Admits

After Mel Owens filmed the Golden Bachelor reunion special and sat down to chat with reporters, he had one request. “Be nice to me!” he asked, earnestly.

But really, Owens had already faced his toughest critics when, on the first night of the second season of ABC‘s senior-aged spinoff series of The Bachelor, the 66-year-old former NFL player turned lawyer had to atone for some off-putting comments he made on a podcast shortly before filming began.

For the first time on the long-running reality TV dating competition, the classic first night — when the lead meets all of the women or men who will compete for their coveted final rose — was filled with more than just over-the-top limo entrances and awkward pull asides. There was also a lot of apologizing.

Almost one by one, the group of 60-and-over female contestants took Owens to task for saying on that podcast that if the women are “60 or over, I’m cutting them.” He added, “This is not The Silver Bachelor, this is The Golden Bachelor.”

But Owens was, again, earnestly apologetic when he owned up to what he said, as he offered up several apologies and asked the women to give him a second chance, which they soon did. Now, weeks after that Sept. 24 premiere, he faced the group again but in a different format — instead of on the driveway of the Bachelor mansion, he met them face-to-face on an ABC stage to film the Women Tell All reunion show, which aired just two weeks before the season finale, when Owens could get engaged to one of his final two contestants.

“The expectations, obviously, were high going into this season,” Owens told The Hollywood Reporter, speaking after the reunion show and reflecting on his state of mind before filming began. “Because I knew about the franchise and how well it’s run, but my season exceeded expectations. I can’t speak about the other seasons, but my season did. I thought the women were great. They treated me well, and we had a wonderful time.”

Once the cameras started rolling, Owens has no regrets about how he handled himself. Judging his performance as a lead, Owens added, “Being vulnerable is discovering who you are, and how you feel as you go through the process. Sometimes that’s internal, even though you may not show it externally. But I grew from knowing all the women and our interactions. The women were diverse and from different backgrounds, and that was really appealing. They were from all over; they had kids and grandkids,” said the father of two. “It was really a truly unique experience.”

Owens’ final two contestants are Cindy, a 60-year-old retired biomedical engineer from Austin, Texas, and Peg, a 62-year-old retired firefighter and bomb tech from Las Vegas, Nev. Though he was mum on whether or not he finds love in the end, Owens and his exes agreed on one thing when they spoke to reporters, including THR, after the reunion taping — they believe this process works, and that you can find lasting love on the Golden Bachelor, despite what skeptics think.

“People are probably like, ‘Oh, it’s a show,’” said Carol, who eliminated herself over a lack of a connection with Owens before hometown dates. “Because guess what? If you can make friendships like I did with the women for the rest of your life, why can’t you fall in love with somebody for the rest of life in this short term process? I don’t believe you have to know someone forever to fall in love.”

And while most of the women were hesitant about returning to the franchise via summer spinoff series Bachelor in Paradise, all of them were open to the idea of becoming the next Golden Bachelorette.

“I really want to get married. I’ll be 65 next month so that’s the year for me. I don’t have time to mess around,” said Nicolle, who stirred up drama this season and admitted she apologized to the first season’s Golden Bachelor contestants for some of her comments while mic’d.

Castoff Gerri, who received the first impression rose but was later eliminated, added, “The Bachelorette does all the hard work. All I’d have to do is pick between 23 men? How fun would that be?” While Debbie, who placed in the final three, admitted, “I didn’t even think they would consider me because I’ve never been married and never had kids. I am so ready now. After going through this experience and opening my heart, and knowing I’m capable of feeling these things again, I miss it. I want a companion.”

Cheryl, who was eliminated in week five, agreed. “Mel was the one that that I was falling in love with and was hoping to take a journey with him,” she said. “That didn’t happen, and it was heavy on my heart. But I’m hopeful I’m going to find somebody.”

Whoever gets picked to lead the next cycle — which has yet to be officially renewed following Joan Vassos’ inaugural season in 2024 — the women all said they are prepared for the grueling production requirements after sharing tight quarters in the mansion and filming around the clock on Owens’ season, including a first night that didn’t wrap until long after the sun came up.

“Filming is nonstop. From morning until night, you’re on, which I didn’t know,” admits Carol. “I thought, ‘Is it lunchtime yet? I have to put makeup on again today?’ You have to have some stamina, that’s for sure, but it’s fantastic. If anyone is out there wants to do this process, I believe in it, I really do. I believe you can find love. It was all worth it.”

The Golden Bachelor releases new episodes Wednesdays at 9 p.m. on ABC, streaming the next day on Hulu.