The Bachelorette's Michelle and Nayte announced their split and the reverberations are already affecting Bachelor Nation fans and alums alike.
Fans of The Bachelorette are shocked that Michelle Young and Nayte Olukoya ended their engagement, but the ripple effects across Bachelor Nation are just getting started. Michelle joined the franchise on Matt James' season of The Bachelor before joining as the lead on The Bachelorette. Michelle's runner-up, Brandon Jones, quickly became a fan favorite for his down-to-earth energy and ability always to make her laugh. However, he wasn't the one.
In the final episodes of The Bachelorette season 18, Michelle admitted she was in love with both Brandon and Nayte. Yet, the sexual chemistry with Nayte was palpable early on, whereas Brandon brought more of a soft romance with best friend energy. For the sake of the storyline, producers made it look like Brandon would win Michelle's heart. They also made it seem like Michelle and fans were worried Nayte wasn't ready for a commitment. However, the stronger connection with Nayte won out, and Brandon left the beach in tears.
Unfortunately, on the other side of The Bachelorette season, it was hard for viewers to buy into Nayte and Michelle's romance entirely. The couple definitely seemed like a happy couple, but now that the relationship has ended, fans have circled back to speculating about his potential playboy persona. Nayte was accused early on of having a tactical approach to Michelle's season and projecting overconfidence. Miya wrote on Twitter, “you all are lying to yourselves if you truly didn't see Michelle and nayte's breakup coming. That man was walking red flag and told his dad that he loved him FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER ON NATIONAL TV!!!!” That man wasn't ready for an engagement!!!” K agreed, writing, “Michelle was literally begging nayte to say he even liked her in the final episode meanwhile Brandon was writing her love letters and her mom told her to pick Brandon.“
you all are lying to yourselves if you truly didn’t see michelle and nayte’s breakup coming. that man was walking red flag and told his dad that he loved him FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER ON NATIONAL TV!!!! That man wasn’t ready for an engagement!!!
– miya🫧 (@ itsamiya18) June 18, 2022
When it comes to casting black Bachelor leads, Bachelor Nation has a poor track record. Rachel Lindsay felt the franchise should take a pause after she called out Chris Harrison for making many problematic statements while defending Rachel Kirkconnel for attending a plantation party. Matt James distanced himself almost immediately from The Bachelor franchise after the fallout. Then he shared that he felt frustrated watching the show, sharing pieces of himself were left out, and his relationship was turned into a sideshow. Last but not least, Tayshia Adams' breakup with Zack Clark was put on blast in front of a live audience where she was clearly uncomfortable. Tayshia has also since distanced herself from Bachelor Nation and moved on to other ventures, including hosting for E News! and the MTV Movie & TV Awards. Mmichellelo wrote, “zac and tayshia…Michelle and nayte…i can't do this franchise anymore.”
With time, viewers will find out the details of Nayte and Michelle's breakup. Many are already asking if Michelle and Nayte will be asked to return the $200,000 ABC gifted them to buy a house, a move that arguably was aimed to motivate their loyalty to the franchise. Now that they've broken up and can no longer campaign as The Bachelorette's happy couple, both parties may come out with their own frustrations against producers and ABC. The cause of Michelle and Nayte's breakup is still unknown, but fans are just beginning to see how the results are already changing Bachelor Nation.
Sources: Mmichellelo/ Twitter, KTwitter, Miya/ Twitter
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