Former Bachelor contestant Cassie Randolph filed for a restraining order against ex-boyfriend Colton Underwood on Friday, September 11, Life & Style can confirm. The request was filed for “domestic violence prevention,” but it is not yet clear what her allegations are against him. It has not yet been approved by a judge.
Life & Style reached out to Randolph and Underwood’s teams but did not hear back by the time of publication.
The Bachelor Nation couple started dating after meeting during season 23. The pair announced they split in May 2020 after nearly two years together.
On May 29, the former football player, 28, said he and Randolph ended things after a “crazy few months” and “a lot of self-reflecting.” He noted it wasn’t “the end of [their] story” but rather “a whole new chapter.”
The Huntington Beach native, 25, wrote her own lengthy social media message shortly after. “First off, I want to say this is one of the hardest things I have had to share as neither one of us is quite ready to talk about it yet,” Randolph began a lengthy post via Instagram the same day. “Colton and I have broken up, but have decided to remain a part of each other’s lives. With all that we have gone through, we have a special bond that will always be there. I love Colton very much and have an enormous amount of respect for him. We have both learned and grown so much these past couple years, and will always have each other’s back. Always.”
However, things appeared to take a contentious turn later that summer. Randolph acknowledged it had been “an awful few months” while clapping back at people “hating” on her because of their breakup, but the tipping point came when she appeared on The Bachelor: The Greatest Seasons Ever on July 6.
Although the grad student stayed relatively hush-hush about her and Underwood’s uncoupling while speaking with Chris Harrison, she received backlash from some fans who called her appearance disrespectful. “I’ve said this a million times, you guys cannot judge something that you know is edited and know nothing about … There was so much more that I talk about in that interview than just our relationship,” she said on her Instagram Story at the time.
On the heels of her appearance, Underwood shared a cryptic message. “When our relationship ended we agreed to handle things as privately as possible as we attempted to navigate our new relationship as friends. I chose to do that since we were living in this interim period, but obviously a lot changed this week,” he wrote on July 9. “If you’ve been kind enough to have followed our story you’ve been with us through all of the ups and downs which have taught me so many lessons. I’ve come to realize when you’re in the thick of it you just need to take a step back and look at things from a different perspective.”
Sadly, things took a more upsetting turn the following day when Randolph went on “public record” via her Instagram Story and accused her ex of trying to “monetize their breakup by writing a new chapter” of his book, The First Time. She also claimed he “refused to give [her] any sort of approval” over what he would write and publish.
However, Underwood seemed to have a different version of events when he appeared on Reality Steve’s podcast on August 13. “As far as what the book was and is, the chapter is done. I wrote the chapter, and she saw it and was OK with it and we made changes,” he said. “I say we. I know it’s my book but like, there was more than just the breakup. It wasn’t a chapter just about the breakup or just to get back at anybody … We go into the details that we’re comfortable sharing in that chapter and we both went over it together.”
He also said his shady Instagram post in July was “more [directed] toward The Bachelor.” He said about her interview, “I know Cassie’s a big girl and she can fight her own battles, but I know her heart. She doesn’t want to rock the boat, and she loves people even if they abuse her or even if they take advantage of her, which is what they did.”
The former Bachelorette contestant added he has “nothing but good things” to say about Randolph.
Time will tell what happens now.