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It’s probably safe to say The Bachelor star Clayton Echard is not having a good week. The Missouri native previously reached out to former Bachelors Nick Viall and Matt James for support as he prepared for the inevitable backlash from fans after the Fantasy Suite dates. Now, host Jesse Palmer is giving fans a bit of insight into Clayton’s side of the situation.

[Warning: This article contains spoilers for The Bachelor with Clayton Echard.]

'The Bachelor' host Jesse Palmer seen wearing a suit at the 'Women Tell All,' breaks down what happened that night with 'The Bachelor' Clayton Echard.
Host Jesse Palmer | ABC/Craig Sjodin

Members of Bachelor Nation claim Clayton gaslit Susie Evans during their argument at the end of their Fantasy Suite date

Several people have used the term “gaslighting” when describing Clayton’s response to Susie’s refusal to compromise certain values. However, the former football player disagrees with that assessment.

Clayton recently spoke to Kaitlyn Bristowe on her podcast, Off the Vine. He told Kaitlyn, “I’m almost fuming at people using this term gaslighting. I am so angry at the fact that people were trying to say I’m a gaslighter because it couldn’t be farther from the truth,” he said. “I looked at the definition and it’s when you try to convince someone that their reality is not factual. And that couldn’t be farther from the truth. I did not try to convince her that her reality was not factual. I was just trying to convince her to give me another chance and understand where I was coming from. Not once did I say, ‘The way you’re thinking about this is wrong, you are in the wrong going this way.’ Never once did I do that.”

With shows like The Bachelor, producers can’t fit every piece of footage into an episode. That’s why when host Jesse Palmer stopped by the Clickbait podcast, he was able to give more details on what really went down that night.

‘The Bachelor’ host Jesse Palmer said Clayton started to ‘spiral’

After dinner with Susie began to go downhill in the March 8 episode of The Bachelor, Clayton stepped outside and talked to Jesse about the situation. Audiences didn’t see the full extent of their conversation, though.

Speaking to the hosts of Clickbait, Jesse said, ‘I think the best way to describe it, Clayton was shattered. He was really lost. I don’t think that night ended out anywhere near close to what he had anticipated or what he was hoping for. I know going in how excited he was to tell Susie he was in love with her. What happened afterward he was not expecting, and I think we all sort of saw on TV what I saw in person. Clayton kind of started spiraling as he was at the dinner table with Susie. He started to get emotional. He was so emotional, so fired up. I think he was everything – he was confused, he was upset, he was trying to process everything in real-time, but he was a mess that night in Iceland for sure.”

Jesse also explained that audiences only saw a snippet of the dinner with Susie. In reality, their conversation at dinner lasted at least an hour.

Related

Former ‘Bachelor’ Nick Viall Calls Clayton Echard Out, Says He’s ‘Being a D***’ to Susie Evans

Teasers for the following episode hint at Susie’s return

Even though it appears Susie said goodbye to Clayton for good, the teasers for the next episode hint that she returns. At one point, clips showed Jesse knocking on someone’s hotel room door, and most fans believe it’s Susie. 

Fans will need to tune in on Monday night to watch the final episodes of Clayton’s journey on The Bachelor. 

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