Chris Harrison is famous for helping singles navigate the ups and downs of trying to date multiple people at the same time. But when it comes to his love life, "The Bachelor" host only has eyes for one.
And Harrison told Insider that he and girlfriend Lauren Zima are the strongest they've ever been after going through the pandemic together.
"There's going to be a lot of pandemic breakups and divorces, and luckily we are not one of those," Harrison said with a laugh. "We are very much together and it has helped us grow together. It's forced a lot of situations where we've spent a lot of time together."
The couple, who've been dating since 2018, have long for more time together since their jobs keep them extremely busy. Zima is a correspondent for Entertainment Tonight, while Harrison travels around the world to film "The Bachelor," "The Bachelorette," and "Bachelor in Paradise" every year.
Harrison said quarantine was "kind of a godsend," allowing the pair to finally slow down and cherish their time together.
"It really pushed the pause button," he added. "We got to spend a lot of intimate time together and it was great."
What Harrison wasn't expecting, though, was that quarantine would help him relate more than ever to the "Bachelor" and "Bachelorette" contestants that he's been mentoring for the last 18 years.
As filming began for Clare Crawley's season of "The Bachelorette" — which was all shot in one location due to coronavirus restrictions — Harrison said he realized that the lockdown wasn't all that different from the show.
"I never thought about it until we started shooting, but it really helped me sympathize with what the Bachelors and Bachelorettes go through," he said. "You're kind of quarantined — which is what we do on the show — and take away all your travel, all the things you do, your defense mechanisms to get away and you just have to be alone with your own thoughts and relationships. So it was a test, just like the 'Bachelor' and 'Bachelorette.'"
Harrison said some of the past contestants loved that their host finally understood everything that they had to go through.
"I actually had Nick Viall go, 'Hey, you got a taste of your own medicine. Now you know what it's like,"' Harrison recalled with a laugh.
But there have also been times when "The Bachelor" has taught Harrison valuable life lessons, such as when he first re-entered the dating world after his 2012 divorce.
Harrison realized that, just as some contestants don't come onto the show "for the right reasons" (as the now-iconic catchphrase goes), the dating world is also full of people who might have ulterior motives.
"You have to figure out, does this person want me for my money? Do they want me for my fame? Do they want me for who I am?" Harrison said. "Those are questions you have to ask anyway, and you have to look a little deeper than if this person is just hot and has perfect abs."
That's why Harrison still believes that the "Bachelor" is an authentic reflection of society, even as its former contestants build lucrative Instagram influencer careers after the cameras stop rolling — leading viewers to question how many of them really want to find love in the first place.
"I always say we're shaped by society. I don't think the show is shaping society," he said. "I think we take our cues from what's going on in the world, and there were always people who came on to be an actor or actress or promote their music career. Have things exponentially changed? Yeah, I mean when we started there was no social media, there was no Instagram and the gummy hair bears and whatever else these people are selling, you didn't have to worry about that."
"But the great thing is, the show's never been predicated on the fact that it's guaranteed to work and everyone is there for sincere reasons," Harrison added. "That's why I've always kind of loved that the show is a microcosm of life."
After 18 years and 40 seasons, Harrison said that the most important lesson "The Bachelor" has taught him is that, when it comes to dating, you truly can't fake it.
"People often think when they come on the 'Bachelor' that, 'Hey, I'm going to be the funny guy or I'm going to be the loud girl' or whatever," he said. "But you can't fake it that long, you're going to show up. So just be yourself."
"People often ask, 'How do I get on the show? What do I need to do?' and there is no thing," Harrison added. "It really is just your story and being yourself. Isn't that how you want to be accepted at the end of the day anyway?"
- Read more:
- Chris Harrison reveals what he actually does when he's not on-camera while filming 'The Bachelor' franchise
- Chris Harrison says 'Bachelor' franchise can 'do better' in terms of diversity, on and off camera
- Everything we know about this season of 'The Bachelorette'
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