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Bachelor’s ‘Queen’ Victoria Larson Is ‘Not Letting All the Hate Get to Her,’ Friend Blames Editing (Exclusive)

A regal outlook! Victoria Larson made waves almost as soon as The Bachelor season 25 kicked off, but the self-proclaimed “queen” has managed to keep her head up through it all.

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“She’s feeling pretty good right now. She’s not letting all the hate get to her too much,” a friend exclusively tells Us Weekly. “She’s asked me for advice because this isn’t a situation she’s ever had to deal with before, and the advice I gave her was, ‘It’s better to be hated than to be forgotten. It’s better to be talked about than to not be talked about.’ And that’s what stuck with her. At least people are reacting to her — she should see it as a positive thing.”

Bachelor’s ‘Queen’ Victoria Larson Is ‘Not Letting All the Hate Get to Her,’ Friend Blames Editing
Craig Sjodin/ABC

Victoria, 28, turned heads when she arrived at Nemacolin Resort in Farmington, Pennsylvania, in a tiara to meet Matt James.

“I’m Victoria, like the queen, and I’m looking for a king with a good heart. So, I heard that’s you, King Matt,” the Los Angeles native told the real estate broker, 29, during the January 4 premiere. “Queen Victoria is here. I know I’m so confident and so fun, I know I made a good impression, so I just wanna put, like, my best foot forward. … I am the queen of this kingdom.”

Related: Everything We Know About ‘The Bachelor’ Season 25

Despite Victoria’s eyebrow-raising and over-the-top introduction, the friend describes her as a “sweetheart” and “one of the nicest people” around.

“It’s a TV show. You come in and people play characters,” the friend tells Us. “There’s supposed to be drama. It’s supposed to be entertaining. If you go on there and you’re the sweetest person on the planet, it doesn’t necessarily make for great TV.”

Bachelor’s ‘Queen’ Victoria Larson Is ‘Not Letting All the Hate Get to Her,’ Friend Blames Editing
Courtesy of Victoria Larson/Instagram

The flight attendant’s friend went on to blame the editing of the reality show, telling Us that “it was a shock” for Victoria to watch her journey play out on TV. (Us Weekly has reached out to ABC for comment.)

Related: 'The Bachelor' Star Matt James' Hottest Photos

Just two episodes into the season, Victoria became the villain of the cast after a heated argument with Marylynn Sienna. However, she has continued to develop a connection to Matt, which has confused some of the other women vying for his heart.

“I don’t think people are just born this way,” ABC executive Robert Mills said of the Florida State University graduate on Nick Viall’s “Viall Files” podcast earlier this week. “She has a way of dealing with women that is interesting.”

The Bachelor airs on ABC Mondays at 8 p.m. ET.

With reporting by Diana Cooper

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