Producer Mike Fleiss continued to tease an appearance from President Donald Trump on this summer's Bachelor In Paradise with yet another tweet Tuesday. In this post, the brain behind the Bachelor franchise suggested that the show might not take place in Playa Escondido this year. It might in fact take place at Mar-A-Lago, the president's resort in Palm Beach, Florida.
"#BachelorInParadise at Mar-a-lago???" Fliess wrote on Twitter. "It could happen. Official announcement coming soon..."
Given that we already know that Jorge the Bartender, a staple of the series, won't be returning, the change of location seems plausible. But still — the official announcement is yet to come. We shall see.
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This story was originally published on April 4, 2017 at 10:45 a.m.
There's a nasty rumor afoot that Donald Trump is headed to ABC's salacious summer reality show Bachelor in Paradise. This less-than-pleasing teaser didn't just rise from the depths of Reddit or from an "anonymous source" or a friend of a friend of a friend. No, this rumor comes straight from the horse's mouth — Mike Fleiss, Bachelor executive producer, tweeted Monday that the 45th president might just appear on the upcoming season of Bachelor in Paradise.
"Working out details to have @realDonaldTrump make an appearance on this summer's #BachelorInParadise !" Fleiss wrote. He added a cheeky hashtag "#historicness" — this would appear to be a nod to Bachelor franchise's penchant for declaring just about everything "historic." (It could also be an allusion to our current president's predilection for hyperbole and neologisms.)
The rumor is both flabbergasting and not. Bachelor in Paradise has next to no premise, so it relies entirely on bizarre characters for entertainment value. As such, it's seemingly scrupulous with its casting decisions. Case in point: the casting of Bachelorette super-villain Chad Johnson, who will allegedly return this summer as well. Johnson, who was reportedly violent on the set of Bachelor in Paradise season 3, isn't so dissimilar from our current president. For one, both Johnson and Trump seem to have made their fortune in real estate, although Johnson works primarily in Oklahoma. For another, they both have problematic attitudes toward women. Chad Johnson called fellow BIP contestant Sarah Herron a "one-armed bitch" and Trump has stated on the record that he's grabbed women "by the pussy."
The same day, though, Fleiss tweeted that Johnson's second appearance on BIP hasn't been confirmed. "Nothing is official about @realChadJohnson or anyone else until the official announcement is made right here... #BachelorInParadise," the producer wrote. Fleiss has yet to respond to a request for comment on his teasing of Trump's appearance, but this tweet seems indicative that Fleiss's Twitter is about as official as it can get. So, if he tweeted about the president potentially appearing on the show, chances are it may very well be in the works. That being said, Twitter — and the internet in general — is the land of unsubstantiated rumors, so one never knows.
ABC also has yet to respond to a request for comment.