Chris Harrison's 'GMA' interview reportedly 'the nail in the coffin' for possible 'Bachelor' return

Chris Harrison is no longer a part of The Bachelor, The Bachelorette or Bachelor in Paradise, but he's still producing drama.

New details of the disgraced host's messy exit from the Bachelor franchise have emerged through this The Hollywood Reporter report by Ashley Cullins and Jackie Strause.
Harrison's (virtual) sit-down Good Morning America interview with Michael Strahan, and the unimpressed reaction Strahan had to the 49-year-old's apology, on March 4 was "the nail in the coffin" to any chance of a return, according to an unnamed insider.

Context from Cullins and Strause:

"At the time, Harrison was talking about his return with bosses ABC and Warner Horizon, which produces and distributes the Mike Fleiss-created franchise. While there had been no public show of support for Harrison from the network or the show’s producers, the decision-makers were privately telling the face of their franchise they wanted him back and that he should remain patient, says a show insider."

The lack of public support continued March 12 when former Bachelorette leads Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe were announced as "mentors" for Season 17 of The Bachelorette featuring Katie Thurston, which premiered June 7.

More from THR:

"Sources say that in the days leading up to the Bachelorette premiere, leaks in the press about Harrison’s negotiations and replacement hosts for summer spinoff Bachelor in Paradise signaled that the rift between the star and producers became untenable. 'Both sides had the intention of Chris returning, and he was putting in the work in order to make that happen. And then it suddenly took a turn. He was iced out,' this show insider says. Harrison instead walked away with a settlement."

Deadline was the first to report June 8 that Harrison was officially exiting after 19 years as the franchise's lone host and walked away with a "mid-range eight-figure payoff and promise to keep his mouth shut."

Harrison's downfall began Feb. 9, when he clumsily tried to excuse then-contestant Rachael Kirkconnell's past racially insensitive and offensive behavior at a 2018 Old South antebellum-themed college party: