In a stunning announcement this week, ABC didn’t merely confirm that no wrongdoing took place between DeMario Jackson and Corinne Olympios during filming on Bachelor in Paradise…
… the network also stated that shooting would actually resume on Season 4 of the controversial reality show.
After shutting down production due to allegations of sexual misconduct, Warner Bros. wrapped up an investigation that looked into Jackson’s drunken hook-up with Olympios.
It studied a videotape and announced that Jackson did not act inappropriately during this naked interaction.
“We can say that the tape does not support any charge of misconduct by a cast member,” wrote the company in a statement, adding:
“Nor does the tape show, contrary to many press reports, that the safety of any cast member was ever in jeopardy…
“We plan to implement certain changes to the show’s policies and procedures to enhance and further ensure the safety and security of all participants.”
Despite assumptions that the show would cancel Season 4 no matter what this investigation turned up, Warner Bros. concluded that “production on this season of Bachelor in Paradise will be resuming.”
So much for questions over whether a program that centers on alcohol and nudity ought to be on the air.
There are ratings to achieve and money to earn!
In light of this confirmation, we’ve since learned that Corinne will NOT be returning to Mexico to complete Season 4.
(No d’uh, basically. She may still be planning a lawsuit.)
We’ve also learned that Jackson has turned down an invitation from the network, as he remains angry over the way his name was dragged through the mud and would prefer to simply move on from the entire scandal.
So… Olympios is out. Jackson is out. They were to be the show’s main villains on Season 4.
Who is actually in?!?
Alexis Waters posted a video of her singing the Bachelor in Paradise theme song on Wednesday, meaning she’s clearly coming back.
Raven Gates wrote “Back to Paradise” along with a GIF of her from The Bachelor, saying: “Now I’m gonna drink my wine.”
The Z-Lister later tweeted she couldn’t wait to throw more crabs at people while they sleep.
After Ashton Kutcher commented on the show this week, Vinny Ventiera Tweeted: “Excited to go back to #BachelorInParadise but even more excited to know that @aplusk will be watching!”
Robby Hayes also seemed to confirm his participation, writing on social media: “Well, I’ve been too lazy to unpack anyway…”
No one here seems too traumatized over what allegedly transpired between Corinne and DeMario, huh?
Perhaps because ABC has made them signed non-disclosure agreements. Perhaps because the entire incident was overblown.
Perhaps because they don’t care, they just want their time in the spotlight.
Amanda Stanton, meanwhile, posted a picture on Instagram Stories, confirming she was flying back to Paradise.
We’re also pretty sure that Lacey Mark, Jasmine Goode, Iggy Rodriguez, Nick Benvenutti, Taylor Nolan and Kristina Schulman are also returning for Season 4.
Everyone aside from Olympios and Jackson, it seems.
We have no idea whether the series will address their scandal on air or whether Season 4 will premiere on August 8, as originally planned.
We’re gonna go ahead and guess that the answer is “yes” to both of these questions.
But whether the series should actually return to the air? We’ll leave that topic up to our readers to debate.
Go ahead and do so! What do you think?!?
