Being an actual contestant on The Bachelor is simply not humiliating enough for some folks. Others have to extend their .5 seconds of fame and come back to the show, via their spin-offs, or if you’re Shawntel Newton, you can return in a surprise visit.
In an interview with People, Shawntel explains what the hell she was doing there as well as her very special connection via sexting (er, I mean, “Twitter fling”) to current bachelor Ben Flajnik. Plus, how she dealt with the abuse backlash she received from the other contestants!
On why she decided to meet Ben on the show, instead of meeting him for a drink like a normal person:
“I didn’t want to go back on national television, but I wanted to at least meet Ben in person. This was the only chance I had. [He could] be engaged in a couple of months. It was worth trying. It wasn’t like I was in love with this guy, but I thought there could be something … I didn’t think anyone was in love yet so I didn’t think I was stepping on too many toes.”
On some of the not-so-nice reactions she received from the actual contestants:
I knew I was walking into a lion’s den. I expected going in to have the girls a little confused and upset with me. … Insecurities came out and nothing could have prepared me [for] the reaction [I got]. Hearing girls saying I’m uglier in person and have big thighs and calling me dumpster trash and a b—- – was intense. I was hurt. Jaclyn told me she wanted to punch [me] in the face. Courtney was the most harsh. When I got sent home, she laughed and said, “Sayonara.” Defending myself for two hours was exhausting. A girl can only take so much. I snuck off to the bathroom and I cried.
On her very intimate Twitter relationship with Ben:
I made it very clear on Twitter I had a crush on him and wanted to get to know him [during] Ashley’s season. He sent me a private message and we exchanged numbers. We [said] we should meet in person but he couldn’t be seen in public. It never happened.
On how she thought her surprise visit would do:
I was very confident walking in, because I knew he felt something for me, too. I really thought he would keep me and at least take me on a date to see if there was something. I would have liked that a whole lot better than talking to him for two minutes, getting picked on and then being sent home.
On who’s wearing the pants on the Bachelor set:
I think the biggest influence [on his decision] was Courtney. She basically gave him an ultimatum – “If you keep Shawntel, I’m out” – and he’s making it clear he’s head over heels for her. I think he ends up choosing her.
In other news, Bravo’s own Andy Cohen also made a shocking revelation when he told the HollywoodLife he was once approached to be The Bachelor!
“I got a call once years ago before anybody knew who I was,” Andy revealed. “My picture was in W magazine, and the producers of The Bachelor called. They were calling to see if I would ever be interested in going through the casting process.”
Andy err of course turned ABC down for obvious reasons. “I said, ‘You are barking up the wrong tree,’” he stated. “‘Unless The Bachelor is going in a different direction …”
TELL US: SHOULD BEN HAVE KEPT SHAWNEL? DO YOU THINK SHAWNEL IS DESPERATE FOR PULLING THIS STUNT? IS COURTNEY BEN’S TOP CHOICE RIGHT NOW? DO YOU WANT TO SEE A GAY BACHELOR SEASON?
