Here’s a serious case of the pot calling the kettle black. Golden Bachelor Season 2’s Mel Owens is catching heat for making ageist comments on a recent podcast appearance. Supposedly, he plans on cutting any women over 60 from the upcoming edition of the all-seniors dating show. He has a very specific idea of what he wants.
Mel, who is 66, appeared on an episode of a podcast called “mGoBlue Podcasts with Jon Jansen.” That’s a mouthful, and what Mel had to say about his dating preferences was an earful. He shared a story about a meeting he had with the show’s executive producer, where he told them the type of woman he wanted.
Golden Bachelor Mel Owens is accused of ageism
“They ask me, ‘What’s your preference?’ So I just said 45 to 60, just being honest,” Mel recalled on the podcast. “And then we had lunch with the executive producer. I said, ‘You know, if they’re 60 or over, I’m cutting them.’”
For comparison, Gerry Turner from Golden Bachelor Season 1 was 72 when ABC cast him as The Golden Bachelor. He wound up falling in love with a fellow septuagenarian, Theresa Nist. Mel has something different in mind for his future.
The former NFL player continued, “They asked me, ‘What is my profile?’ Well, [the women] got to be fit, because I’m staying in shape and work out and stuff. And I told them, ‘Try to stay away from the artificial hips and the wigs, you know, that kind of stuff, right?’”
Supposedly, the producer encouraged Mel that the women would be “hot,” so he wouldn’t have anything to worry about. Everything about this conversation gave Bachelor Nation a serious case of the ick.
One fan wrote on X, formerly Twitter, “Mel Owens & @ABCNetwork @GoldenBachABC an take their ageist BS & shove it!”
Meanwhile, several fans suggested recasting Mel. After all, there are plenty of men from Golden Bachelorette who fans hoped to see get this opportunity in the first place.
“@BachelorABC should recast Mel Owens immediately,” a viewer wrote. “We want Charles L for Golden Bachelor! But if that’s not possible, please at least give us someone who is actually interested in dating the cast of golden women who are 60+.”
There’s no current air date announced for Golden Bachelor Season 2, which means it’s not too late for a last-minute change. After last season’s failed attempt at reality TV love, we want to see them get it right this time.
The Golden Bachelor is streaming on Hulu.
TELL US – DO YOU THINK MEL’S COMMENTS WERE AGEIST? WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE CALLS TO HAVE HIM REPLACED?
