ABC Exec Robert Mills Addresses Religion Backlash, Queen Victoria’s Future in Bachelor Nation and More

Credit: Craig Sjodin/ABC; Inset: Matt Sayles/Invision/AP/Shutterstock

ABC Exec Robert Mills Addresses Religion Backlash, Queen Victoria’s Future in Bachelor Nation and More

Matt James’ journey to find love is officially underway — and ABC executive Robert Mills is answering Bachelor Nation’s burning questions about season 25. “Episode one I always view as the pregame show,” the head of ABC’s Alternative Series, Specials & Late-Night Programming began on the Tuesday, January 12, episode of Nick Viall’s “Viall Files” podcast. “There’s a lot of root-ability, but there’s some ridiculousness [this season] as well.” The 29-year-old former football player kicked off his journey during the January 4 premiere with a prayer at Nemacolin Resort in Pennsylvania. “I didn’t expect [the prayer] to be such a hot-button [topic] of interest. And I actually understand some of it, [when people ask], ’What if this had been someone of a different domination?’” Mills told the season 21 Bachelor. “I have heard somebody say in the prayer, like, ‘Please either bow your head in the manner you're accustomed to or whatever.’ But this is a guy, he just met 32 women. … The fact that he didn’t tell people, like, ‘Hey if this is not OK with you.' ... He didn't mean —" Nick, 40, then injected, “It’s just a prayer, it’s not going to burn you.” [jwplayer Gc5RMs95-l3ahXupL] Religion also made headlines during The Bachelorette season 16 finale after Tayshia Adams eliminated Ivan Hall, implying there were religious differences between them. “That’s on us for not clarifying that as much as we could,” Mills said, referring to Ivan’s sudden exit. Why did Colton Underwood have to stay 100 yards away from Cassie Randolph? Hear the alleged crazy texts he sent her that earned him a restraining order. In under 2 minutes! Ivan later confirmed that he identifies as “agnostic,” which was a deal breaker for Tayshia. “Atheist is taking a hard stance that there is no God, and that's not what I believe at all. It's completely different things, but everybody confuses it. Agnostic is strictly saying, I don't know, basically,” he explained on Kaitlyn Bristowe’s “Off the Vine” podcast in December. “I’m gonna tell our kids, I don't know what there is, and then you can tell the kids whatever you want, and you can take them to church, that's completely fine with me. For Tayshia, it's something different, where she, I guess, actually wanted to date someone who is Christian. And that's completely fine, and that's how a lot of people are." While there was a discussion on social media about Matt’s opening night prayer, Nick noted that the Wake Forest alum “set the stage for whatever is important to him,” which is key for his future wife to know. “If that’s something that’s a big part of his life and he wants [it] to be a big part of his relationship, it makes sense,” he said. “It also would make sense if it does make someone uncomfortable if they’re not into it, but that’s a discussion then maybe we will have.” The Bachelor airs on ABC Mondays at 8 p.m. ET. Scroll through for the biggest takeaways from Mills:

Credit: Craig Sjodin/ABC

Nemacolin vs La Quinta

Mills admitted that the Pennsylvania resort is better suited for the franchise compared to the Palm Springs hotel where season 16 shot during the summer of 2020.

“It was a smaller footprint, but 90 percent of that too was just getting the ground rules of how it would work. I mean it was a 40-page document that they had to write up and get through,” he said of La Quinta. 

Credit: Craig Sjodin/ABC

The Religion Debate

“We’re 25 seasons in, so there has to be a balance. It’s great to see the ridiculousness and what you would basically call nothing fights … but you need to see this [too],” Mills said, noting he recently saw an article that questioned whether the Bachelor was a “predominantly Christian show.”

He continued: “It’s something I never thought about. It’s certainly an interesting point and something to think about. If people want to discuss religion, they should, and we absolutely should air it.”

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'Twists and Turns' to Come

Mills confirmed that more women will arrive at the Pennsylvania resort in upcoming episodes. “It’s coming up. It will not happen next week, but it’s pretty soon,” he said, noting that it’s a “pretty crazy” season with a lot of “twists and turns” still to come.

Bachelor season 23 alum Heather Martin is one of the women who arrive midseason. “This wasn’t, ‘Well, who could we bring on from previous seasons?’ If anything, we wanted to be more agnostic from previous casts,” Mills said before bringing up Matt's BFF Tyler Cameron. “I think people were expecting to see Tyler every episode, like, this was going to be, ‘Tyler the wingman.’ And you haven’t seen him.”

Credit: Craig Sjodin/ABC

Producer Props

During the second episode of the season, Matt gifted Marylynn her “favorite” flower after she wasn’t included on any of the dates. “I thought that her one-on-one at the cocktail party with Matt was, really, kind of touching. It certainly made Matt look great,” Mills said. “There’s always that question of how much do you pay attention or listen [to the contestants].”

Nick subsequently revealed that producers sent the group “cookies” with “a note from Andi [Dorfman]” during season 10 of The Bachelorette. “In the moment, I remember being like, ‘She made me these.’ I convinced myself,” he said, noting the cookies were probably from the store and from production. “You have a way of trying to tell yourself you belong.”

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Victoria’s Persona

Mills maintained that Victoria, whose job description is “Queen,” isn’t putting on an act as she solidifies her spot as a villain. “I think that the question is … why is she that way?” he said. “There’s always a story for how somebody became that way. … I don’t know that you’ll learn more now on The Bachelor, but I’m very curious about it, so maybe it’s something we’ll have Chris [Harrison] ask about or on Paradise. … I don’t think people are just born this way. … She has a way of dealing with women that is interesting.”

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Bachelors Rejecting Kisses

“He’s not really the kissing bandit type,” Mills said about Matt. “He’s not afraid to kiss, but he’s also not somebody who's going to set the record [for Bachelor kisses].”

Nick added that it’s difficult for the lead to “reject” a kiss from a contestant. “It’s more on the cast [how many people the lead kisses],” he said.

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Sarah Getting Lightheaded at the Rose Ceremony

The January 11 episode ended on a cliffhanger after Sarah, who scored a one-on-one date rose, felt lightheaded before Matt started hanging out the roses. “I think it was just some sort of a lightheaded spell. … You’re standing there for a long time, it can get nerve-wracking,” Mills said. “It’s ironic somebody who has a rose [but] it’s not the first time this has happened.”

Credit: ABC/Billy Kidd

AFR and ‘Paradise’ Update

After skipping a live component for season 16 of The Bachelorette amid the coronavirus pandemic, Mills confirmed that they are making a big effort to have an After the Final Rose for Matt’s finale. He also noted that the network is “hell-bent” on making Bachelor in Paradise happen, noting there might be a “super-sized” season of the spinoff because there are so many contestants to choose from — including newly single season 24 Bachelor Peter Weber.

“At the very least, I just want Peter to come [by] on a seaplane. Even if he just does a fly by and leaves,” he quipped.