As a result of production delays caused by the coronavirus pandemic, we really have no idea when Clare Crawley's season of The Bachelorette will debut.
Fortunately, there's no end of off-camera Bachelor Nation drama to tide us over in the meantime!
At the center of this week's fracas is former Bachelor star Nick Viall.
These days, Nick hosts a popular podcast, and he doesn't shy away from offering his two cents about recent contestants.
You may recall that Viall was one of the first to warn us about Luke Parker, the douche-nozzle that almost single-handedly ruined Hannah Brown's season.
Now, he's turning his attention toward a different holier-than-thou evangelical.
Madison Prewett drew a lot of comparisons to Luke during her time in spotlight, and now, Nick is claiming that the similarities go beyond deeply-held religious beliefs and an unhealthy concern with other people's sex lives.
“We also know Madison to be a little bit of a liar. … People want to forget — I know Madison wants to forget it — but her Instagram,” Viall said of Madison. podcast.
“It’s a fact she did that. It is silly and trivial. There’s a logical explanation for it that she wanted people to like her. It’s a totally relatable thing.”
Nick is referring to the mini-scandal that erupted when fans learned that Madison was running her own "fan" page on Instagram.
Nick says he doesn't fault Madison for lying to bolster her career, or for manipulating situations to her advantage -- he just wishes she wouldn't be so high-and-mighty while doing so.
“I’m more critical of that, and I know Madison thinks I don’t like her and I know people think I’ve been hard on Madison. I think she’s just fine; I’ve even defended Madison,” Viall continued.
“But if you’re going to be righteous and you’re going to be pious and you’re going to, like, talk about your relationship with God and how you want to be an example to young women, blah, blah, blah, I hold you to a higher standard, so don’t be a liar."
Nick went on to reference a more Madison scandal involving the allegation that her family passed off Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl's house as their own during Peter's hometown visit.
"Don’t be vain. I’m vain, I can be vain. Don’t have your family use Bruce Pearl’s house for your hometown and sell it as your own home when it’s not your home,” Viall said.
“I don’t like that if you’re going to be super pious. I’ve talked to producers and they like Madison, but they also think she can be a little manipulative and a little bit of a liar.”
This week, Nick denied that he harbors any ill will toward Madison -- but he maintained that she's frequently dishonest.
“I don’t hate Madison,” Viall replied to a fan during a Q&A session on Instagram.
“I have disagreed with some of her decisions she made public. I have also agreed with other things she made public. I have a podcast and I give my opinions about the things people make public when using their platforms," he added.
"I made my opinion public, some people criticized me for it. That’s OK … Conversation and disagreement are healthy.”
Asked if Nick would consider inviting Madison on his podcast, he revealed that he would welcome her in a heartbeat.
“Yes I would have her on. I think it could be an interesting discussion. I don’t think she will,” he wrote.
“I would love to be wrong.”
Don't hold your breath for that one.
Madison might not be scandal-free, but she also doesn't share her former co-stars' taste for drama.
