The Ugly Truth About The Bachelor In Paradise Scandal

TMZ immediately linked the scandal to contestants Corinne Olympios, who had competed on Nick Viall's season of The Bachelor, and DeMario Jackson, who had appeared on the most recent season of The Bachelorette. 

According to sources close to Jackson, Jackson and Olympios had been told by producers on the first day of filming (Sunday, June 4th, 2017) that one of the storylines this season would feature the two of them hooking up. From there, sources alleged that Jackson and Olympios began drinking heavily at the bar, during which Olympios "jumped in his lap and started making out with him" and that there was a lot of "intense rubbing." Afterwards, Olympios allegedly asked to take things to the pool, where things allegedly began to get more sexual; however, Jackson reportedly said "he was not able to engage in intercourse because of the alcohol."

His version of the story goes on to allege that he and Olympios were fine the next day and that it wasn't until Tuesday when Warner Brothers notified them that a producer had filed a complaint about their encounter on Sunday. TMZ says that Jackson and Olympios were released immediately, while the rest of the cast was released two days later.

TMZ also noted that there were "other versions of what happened that differ from DeMario's."

A few hours after publishing its second report, TMZ followed up with Olympios' side of the story. According to sources close to the reality contestant, Olympios claimed she was "blackout drunk" the night of the pool incident and blamed producers "for not pulling the plug and protecting her."

Her story alleged that she was informed of what had happened the next day by various cast members. These cast members allegedly also told Olympios that they had tried to warn producers about Olympios' condition but that producers had done nothing to stop the events from unfolding. Olympios also told friends that she has a boyfriend and wouldn't have done this had she not been so drunk.

According to a subsequent report by TMZ, witnesses claimed that two hours after the incident, Olympios "was stumbling drunk, eyes closed, slurring badly and wearing her clothes inside out."

Sources for the production, meanwhile, told TMZ that nobody complained to them.

According to one of the contestants on the show, the rest of the cast was put on lockdown on Tuesday, June 6th (aka the day Jackson and Olympios were informed of the complaint), meaning they were not allowed to speak to anyone else and were subjected to constant monitoring by producers. 

"We were told to stay in a certain part of the [resort] while they figured out what the hell had happened," the contestant, who asked to remain anonymous, told People. "We knew something bad had happened; there was a dark energy that came around the house. You have to understand that we weren't even there a week. The game hadn't even really begun yet." 

"They stopped taping anything, and we were just kind of there, waiting in limbo," the contestant continues. "We couldn't talk to each other about what we knew. On Thursday, one of the camera guys told me that they were probably going to shut down production. I didn't realize that it was that serious until then. I was like, 'wait, they're thinking of canceling the show?' It hadn't even crossed my mind that they'd do that."

They were informed that production had been halted the following day by producers, one of whom was reportedly in tears. "We're pissed that this whole thing happened," the contestant said. "They could have stopped this before it got this far."

After a few days' silence, Olympios released a statement late Wednesday, June 14th, 2017, in which she flat-out referred to herself as a "victim."

"I am a victim and have spent the last week trying to make sense of what happened on June 4," she said (via CNNMoney). "Although I have little memory of that night, something bad obviously took place, which I understand is why production on the show has now been suspended and a producer on the show has filed a complaint against the production."

Jackson, meanwhile—who was photographed hanging out with friends on the night of Tuesday, June 13th, 2017—also released a statement via his publicist. "It's unfortunate that my character and family name has [sic] been assassinated this past week with false claims and malicious allegations," he said. "I will be taking swift and appropriate legal action until my name is cleared and, per the advice of legal counsel, will be seeking all available remedies entitled to me under the laws." 

Additionally, a few conflicting reports popped up regarding whether he had gotten fired from his job as a recruiting consultant before or after the scandal broke.