The Bachelor stars Nick Viall and Vanessa Grimaldi called off their engagement Friday, five months after he proposed on the hit show.
While the news was heartbreaking, it didn’t exactly come as a surprise to many viewers … or sources who knew the couple best.
News of Nick Viall and Vanessa Grimaldi breaking up was not a shock to one friend of the brunette beauty. In fact, it felt almost overdue.
“Vanessa is extremely close to her family in Montreal, and is very connected to her community and her work there,” the source said.
“Moving to Los Angeles,” where Nick has officially taken up residence, “or elsewhere long term was never really on the table for her.”
“Unfortunately,” laments the source, despite some of his comments, “it seems as though Nick never had any intention of moving to Montreal.”
“Vanessa’s not really into the whole fame thing,” the source adds. “She’s had some fun with it, but that’s not what she’s about.”
“Ultimately, they want different things.”
Raise your hand if you’re surprised.
Anyone? Hello? Not one hand?!
We don’t know Nick personally, so we can’t comment on whether his intentions were pure, but to any viewer, this much was pretty obvious:
He, more than most Bachelor or Bachelorette stars, was enamored with the publicity, fame, spotlight and career opportunities that resulted.
Contrast that with Vanessa, who was at the opposite end of the spectrum, and it’s sort of a small wonder they lasted as long as they did.
Nick went immediately from The Bachelor to Dancing With the Stars, which wouldn’t be the kiss of relationship death in and of itself.
That almost seemed like the goal for him, however, to use The Bachelor as a jump-off point to build his own brand and life in Los Angeles.
Grimaldi, meanwhile, always felt like a fish out of water there and missed Canada, where the source believes she’ll be back in no time.
An additional insider added that “Vanessa is an extremely down-to-earth girl and truly wanted that happily-ever-after with Nick.”
“They both put in a lot of work in the relationship and care a lot for each other,” the source continued, somewhat defending Viall.
“However, time proved that they were better off parting ways in the end. It wasn’t the distance or the limelight [that caused this].”
“They just weren’t the best match for each other.”
Fellow members from Bachelor Nation questioned the couple’s compatibility as Vanessa seemed to keep them all at a distance.
Jasmine Goode and Danielle Lombard, two women who also sought Nick’s roses on The Bachelor, said she went radio silent.
Goode said that was highly unusual for her:
“I think Taylor talks to [Vanessa], I think Danielle [Maltby] does. I’ve seen [Vanessa] here and there. There’s no hard feelings, you know?”
As for whether Goode thought Viall was just acting, she said “sometimes” felt that way, or at least, “I think he was just playing it up, you know?”
Lombard, a.k.a. the Hottest Woman Alive on Bachelor in Paradise, added that she has not heard from Vanessa since the season ended.
“Vanessa and I don’t have a great relationship and I think after things happened with Nick, we just parted ways,” she explained.
“In terms of whether or not I [thought] their relationship would last, I don’t know,” she said, adding that body language might say a lot.
“I think their relationship is very different than other, past Bachelor Nation couples,” she added. “They seem to be a little bit more serious.”
“At least compared to what I’ve seen from Rachel [Lindsay] and Bryan [Abasolo], or Kaitlyn [Bristowe] and Shawn [Booth].”
“Yeah, it seems a lot less playful.”
Many fans were calling this the moment Nick and Vanessa came out on the After the Final Rose special following his season finale.
They seemed … less than happy.
Sometimes we read too much into such appearances, which are both emotional and awkward. Doesn’t look like this was one of those times.
