A lot of drama has happened across 17 seasons of The Bachelorette. From secret girlfriends to sex revelations, the leading ladies of seasons’ past — like Hannah Brown, Emily Maynard and Andi Dorfman — have always kept us on the edge of our seats.
Fans were shocked after Life & Style exclusively broke the news in July 2020 that Clare Crawley threatened to quit season 16 because she had “fallen in love” with contestant Dale Moss just 12 days into filming.
The leading lady left the crew “blindsided” when “she told producers she no longer wanted to participate in the show,” an insider said at the time. Clare and Dale got engaged midseason but split shortly after. However, the reality couple has since rekindled their relationship.
The between the pair left producers “scrambling to figure out what to do.” Luckily, alum stepped in as the new Bachelorette, and it turned out to be a great rest of the season. The California native even found love with contestant Zac Clark, and they are now engaged.
Season 17 of The Bachelorette has a much different feel since Katie Thurston is getting guidance from former leading ladies and cohosts Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe amid Chris Harrison exiting the franchise.
Kaitlyn gushed over being able to be a “support system” for Katie during her journey to find Mr. Right. “One thing we kept saying is, ‘My gosh, it would have been so nice to have this when we were the Bachelorette, to have women who have been in our shoes before come in and be there.’ If it’s just a shoulder to cry on, if it’s you need advice, if you’re feeling alone in it or if you’re feeling like you can’t do it, which we all feel at a certain point,” the “Off the Vine” podcast host told People in June 2021.
That doesn’t mean it was smooth sailing for Katie. An insider told Life & Style the “drama-filled” season took a toll on the Washington native. “It’s definitely an emotional roller coaster for Katie. She doesn’t hold back and will tell it like it is. At one point, she threatened to quit the show. It really got to her and she couldn’t take it anymore,” the source explained before her season premiere in June. “She just walked away from cameras. She kept changing how she felt and her thoughts were all over the place. You will see later on this season how difficult it was for her.”
The insider added, “Like every season there’s a villain, guys who are on the show for the wrong reasons, guys who have a secret or some kind of scandal and surprises.” Time will tell if Katie’s season drama joins the ranks of craziest moments in franchise history.
All is fair in love and Bachelor Nation, right? Keep scrolling to see the wildest Bachelorette moments of all time!