Every season, one of the Bachelor contestants becomes a "villain" early on. She's usually not very self aware, stirs up drama with the other women, and gets sent packing midway through the season as the connections grow between the Bachelor and the rest of his contestants. On Matt James' season, that early troublemaker is Victoria Larson, and while we were certain that she'd be gone by now, she's somehow survived another week. But take heart! The fifth episode seems to finally be her undoing.
It is baffling, however, that it's taken this long. In week 2, when Victoria picked a fight with Marylynn Sienna and tattled to Matt about it, he instantly believed Victoria's claims. But as more women bring up issues with Victoria, he should — like every Bachelor before him — start to see the trouble she's causing when he's not around. At the end of the Jan. 25 episode, Katie Thurston (of vibrator fame) told Matt that there was some nasty rumor spreading going on in the house, that it could ruin someone's life, and he should address the bullying. She didn't specifically name Victoria (at least not in the cut that served up to viewers), but it won't take Matt much asking around to learn that, in addition to contestants like Anna Redman, Victoria has been at the root of a lot of the mean comments this season.
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On Arie Luyendyk Jr.'s Bachelor season, Krystal Nielson was sent home in the sixth episode. Demi Burnett, who was a thorn in her cast's side before becoming a Bachelor Nation darling, also made it to the sixth episode on Colton Underwood's season. Peter Weber's season had a couple of drama starters, but contestants like Alayah Benavidez and Tammy Ly went home in the fourth and sixth episodes respectively. Though we previously predicted that Victoria wouldn't make it past the fourth episode, it does seem like Victoria's luck will run out long before the sixth.
There are no clips from promos from any point in Matt's season that suggest she gets a one-on-one date (conversely, possible frontrunner Bri Springs is all over those promos), so she's probably not long for this season. Most of the rest of her promo time was from the Jan. 25 episode, when she complained about the five new contestants. "Who the fuck are these random ass hoes coming into the house?" Victoria said.
And in the new preview for the Feb. 1 episode, Victoria seems to backtrack, saying, "It was never malicious." (Brittany Galvin whom she called "slutty" and Sarah Trott whom Victoria called "trash" would probably beg to differ.) We can only hope that will be the final straw for Matt, who makes it clear in the promo that he won't tolerate bullying behavior. "I owe it to these women to create a safe space for them," he says in the teaser, while it cuts to him slamming a limo door shut. It certainly looks like this will be the thing that finally sends Victoria home after she's had four episodes to say whatever mean comment pops into her head.
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Everyone who is understandably upset with Victoria's actions thus far can take some solace in knowing she likely won't be around forever, even if she does make it through to episode 5. Bachelor spoiler blogger Reality Steve recently hinted that episode 4 might be her undoing, and if she gets sent home next week, that would technically be the fourth rose ceremony. Reality Steve also weighed in on the fan theory that Victoria is an actress or a production plant to cause drama before being eliminated right on schedule. (For the record, there's no immediate evidence that Victoria is an actress; she doesn't have IMDb credits or evidence of previous acting experience.)
While Victoria is technically doing what other pot-stirrers have done in the past, her choices do feel more rapid and egregious than in previous seasons. So, for all of our sakes, this contestant needs to leave sooner rather than later. No one needs to see this woman bring her crown to a two-on-one date in episode 6. These first few weeks of 2021 have already put us through enough, don't you think?
Update: This story was originally published January 18, 2021. It has been updated to reflect recent episodes of The Bachelor.