The Bachelor Winter Games won’t be like Bachelor in Paradise. It won’t be like The Bachelor, or The Bachelorette, or even Bachelor Pad. It will be something entirely new, though.
“It was really reinventing the wheel and doing something brand new,” said host Chris Harrison in a press call on Thursday. “We had the name of the show, but that was it. It was really just us, as producers, on the road trying to figure out what the show looked like, how close was it going to be to Bachelor, The Bachelorette, Paradise and all the different incarnations of the show that we’ve done.”
Bachelor Winter Games will bring together past Bachelor and Bachelorette contestants from both the American and international editions.
“…Bachelor Winter Games is about lifting the lid and kind of blowing the top off this thing and bringing everybody to the table,” Harrison said. “It’s about bringing people back for a second shot at love, but it’s not just our people, it’s everybody.”
Instead of lounging around and drinking on a beach, the contestants will compete in winter-themed challenges at a winter resort in Vermont. However, the games aren’t meant to play a large role in the show.
“One thing we have learned [from Bachelor Pad], and we did quickly all agree upon is this show cannot be about competition,” Harrison said. “It’s never about competition. That was the fatal flaw with Bachelor Pad. Bachelor Winter Games has to be about relationships.”
And though Harrison didn’t reveal much, he did confirm there were relationships formed.
“You’ll see more than one couple come out of this,” Harrison said. (Could he be referring to rumored couple Dean Unglert and Lesley Murphy?!)
Overall, Harrison seemed happy with the show and how it concluded. “I’ve seen the first couple of episodes,” he said. “It may be some of the best television we’ve ever produced — which scares me, because now, instead of a one-off, we might be doing this every winter now.”
The Bachelor Winter Games premieres on February 14. In the meantime, check out the contestants — including Ben Higgins, Ashley Iaconetti and more — here.