Can’t DeMario Jackson just take his 15 minutes of fame and go? Months after his run with the Bachelor franchise came to an end, DeMario continues to stir up drama. This time, the infamous former contestant is coming for host Chris Harrison. E! News reports that DeMario called Harrison an “asshole” on The Rose Buds podcast, but that was only the tip of the iceberg.
DeMario claims that the beloved Bachelor franchise host has always hated him. “Prior to the whole Corinne show, [Harrison] had a hard on for me as if like, I like, hooked up with his wife or something. It was crazy,” DeMario explained. “I met this guy three total times for less than 10 seconds and he legit hated—like, when I say hate, like deep-rooted. Like him and I at the Men Tell All, we had like 30 minutes of battle and I’m like ‘bro, Lexi—I was already told they put her up to it…And then he went to the press and talked all this shit when we were in the middle of all this.”
The world’s love-hate relationship with DeMario began when he tried to charm his way into Rachel Lindsay’s heart during Season 13 of The Bachelorette. His smooth words couldn’t save him when a woman approached Rachel during a group date, claiming to be DeMario’s girlfriend. The wannabe star was sent packing, only to be welcomed back in another attempt to find love (or fame) on Season 4 of Bachelor in Paradise. Controversy continued when production was halted due to an incident between DeMario and fellow contestant Corinne Olympios. Though an investigation found no evidence of misconduct, DeMario did not return to the show.
Verbally attacking Chris Harrison won’t do any wonders for DeMario’s damaged reputation, but that didn’t stop him from showing his true colors on the podcast. “It was to the point where like 100 percent I kept it real, I called Louie and I said, ‘If he tries this shit when I do the sit down with Corinne, I will knock him the fuck out. Like period. Like straight up,'” DeMario said of sitting down with Harrison to discuss his side of the BIP story. “I was like, I just don’t like the blatant disrespect for a man that I do not know, like bro, I met you three times for less than this. And it’s funny because the media will portray certain people in certain lights and whatnot, but he had a crazy hard on for me and I did not get it at all. It was nuts.”
The media may portray Chris Harrison as ABC’s golden boy, but DeMario is proving to be a serious drama king.