On Monday night, Zach Shallcross’ time as the Bachelor came to a dramatic conclusion.
And for many denizens of Bachelor Nation, that end couldn’t have come soon enough.
As you’re probably aware by now, Zach wasn’t the most popular star in franchise history.
In fact, some went so far as to declare Shallcross the worst Bachelor of all-time.
We wouldn’t go that far — after all, Juan Pablo and Peter Weber stomped on more hearts, and neither seemed to feel much remorse — but it’s not hard to see why Zach wasn’t terribly popular.
Shallcross wound up proposing to Kaity Biggar, and it seems that the two are still engaged, with plans to tie the knot in 2025.
That would make Zach only the second Bachelor in the show’s history to actually marry the recipient of his final rose.
But while snapping that losing streak might make Zach popular with producers, it hasn’t helped his standing with viewers.
Most of the complaints had to do with Zach’s treatment of Gabi Elnicki, the runner-up whom he parted ways with prior to proposing to Kaity.
Zach bizarrely told the whole world that he and Gabi had sex, even though he didn’t have her consent to go public with that information.
To his credit, Zach has apologized for that.
But there’s one thing he won’t apologize for — and that’s going on a date with Gabi even though he’d already decided to propose to Kaity.
Shallcross claims that didn’t happen, and he blames the misconception on Bachelor editors.
“The beauty of reality TV and editing. It was actually not in that order,” he said in a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight.
“I never want there to be this false narrative, but from what I said, it was true,” he continued.
“When I had that date with Gabi, leaving it, I wasn’t fully sure. My mind [was not] made up at all, but when I saw Kaity the next day, I was like, ‘Duh, it’s you. It’s been you.'”
Yes, Zach is the latest Bachelor star to claim he’s the victim of a bad edit, but in this case it might actually be true.
The important thing now is that he and Kaity are still an item — though he says she gives him grief for how much he agonized over his final decision.
“She gives me sh-t for it, but [I was] so in my head, and I just was like, ‘You know what? I take this so seriously, an engagement. I want to make sure,'” Zach joked.
“And then I was worried. And then I was like, ‘Wait, she’s here.'”
As for Gabi, Zach concluded by reiterating his apology to the Vermont native.
“I just want to reiterate to her how sorry I am and how I handled things, because I know I was in the wrong,” Zach told ET.
“I never intended to hurt her with my actions. All I wanted to do was act with honesty, because I knew I had messed up, and I saw the pain that had caused Gabi,” he continued.
“I saw the pain that had caused Kaity and Ariel [Frenkel], and that was the last thing I wanted.”
Being the Bachelor brings lots of unique challenges.
And we’re sure Zach is cool with all the criticism, as long as Kaity still thinks he’s the best.
Zach Shallcross Defends Himself: I Didn’t String Gabi Along! I’m NOT the … was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.