Golden Bachelor Mel Owens Finally Breaks Silence Amid Controversy & Reveals The Impact On His Season

Nearly two months after The Golden Bachelor star Mel Owens made controversial ageist comments about the women in his cast, he's breaking his silence about the backlash against him.

On an episode of the In the Trenches podcast, Mel, a 66-year-old NFL player-turned-lawyer and divorced dad of two teenage sons, stated that he told the Golden Bachelor producers that he only wanted to date women who were aged 45 to 60, and that he'd cut anyone over the age of 60 from the cast.

In addition, Mel shared that he didn't want anyone with artificial hips or wigs to join The Golden Bachelor season 2. Mel's comments were met with outrage from Bachelor Nation fans, who didn't understand why he was cast if he didn't want to go along with the premise of the show. Some even called for his firing, but filming The Golden Bachelor season 2 filming has already begun, with Mel as the lead.

In an interview with Glamour, Mel admitted that he had no idea about the Golden Bachelor age range when he made his controversial comments, and revealed that he apologized to the women on the show as soon as it began. Mel admitted that, at the time that he made his ageist remarks, he had no idea that people might be upset by them, but a friend opened his eyes.

Mel shared, "My friend called me from Michigan. She’s 65, and I went to school with her, and she’s an attorney and a hot shot for the Big 10 in administration. I didn’t know she’s also a big fan of The Bachelor. She said to me, 'Mel…no. What are you doing?' She goes, 'I’m reading all about it.' I didn’t know that it hit that hard. She goes, 'You’ve got to right the wrong.' So I listened to her. That’s how I found out, basically."

Mel confessed that, when his friend told him that what he said was "insensitive" and "just not who you are," he told her that his reference of dating was from when he was 39 to 40 years old because he hadn't dated in 26 to 27 years. His friend told him that it didn't matter and that he'd said some things that were "just incredibly wrong." Mel then said that he realized, "I've got to apologize." He added that he didn't know about the backlash because he's not on much social media.

Mel then explained that he signed up for The Golden Bachelor even though he didn't want to date women over the age of 60, "because I didn’t know anything about The Golden Bachelor ages. I didn’t. I had watched the first show when I was younger, when it first launched or something in 2002, until my son was born. But then when he was born, I didn’t watch it anymore."

Mel continued, "So when these people talk about, 'Hey, this season and that season,' I didn’t know the age range because I wasn’t watching it. I’m thinking, to me, the age range was 45 to 60. That’s my age range. I’m thinking that’s the gold years for me. My reference, again, was when I was dating at 39, 40. I hadn’t dated in 26 years, so I had no clue. And that’s why I said that comment. I didn’t know ... And I didn’t know that [Gerry Turner] got married and then divorced. I didn’t know any of it."

Mel also explained that his comment about not wanting artificial hips "was all part of the reference of age when I made the comment," and he doesn't actually care if someone has something like a knee replacement.

Mel then addressed the people who are upset about his ageist comments, stating, "I apologized to the women on the show. When I first walked in, I addressed it. I apologized to them. I said, 'It was unfair, insensitive. I want to earn it Just give me the chance.' And hopefully, these last two weeks I earned some of that back."

Mel stated that many of the Golden Bachelor women accepted his apology, but some of them addressed the backlash during a roast on the show. He shared, "Yeah, during our one-on-ones, 12 or 15 of them said, 'We appreciate the apology, and it meant a lot to us.' And they also had a roast. One of the dates was a roast. It was brutal. They were killing me."

Mel revealed some of the details from the roast, stating, "I can’t remember all of them, but one said, 'Oh, when Mel was walking with me, he was using me as a cane.' And I’m from Detroit, right? One said, 'Like a Detroit pizza, he’s doughy, squishy, square, and crusty.' It was good because I earned that, and I took it and I deserved it, and it landed squarely on me. They were throwing haymakers. It was good."

Mel also shared that The Golden Bachelor has changed his perspective on aging, saying, "I’m absolutely shocked at the women.Of how active they are. They’re brilliant. They’re brilliant. It’s shocking how brilliant they are."

Mel continued, "I’m talking about collectively…I have a sister. And I’m at the court, and there’s tons of lawyers there, of course, but the things they do, like one was a bomb squad person and there’s a couple dentists, a doctor, a motocross racer, a flight attendant for 40 years. You have all these varied professions. And they’re not 40. They’re 60, 65, maybe 70. And they go, 'Oh, I’m still working. I’m still riding. I have my practice.' So there it is. It’s right in front of you."

Mel also addressed the rumors that he was being replaced as The Golden Bachelor season 2 lead, stating that he never believed them. He said, "When people said to me, 'Hey, are you getting replaced?' I go, 'Not that I know of.' And I wasn’t, again, actively searching frenetically, like, Oh my gosh, what’s going on?"

Mel admitted that he would've been upset if he'd been fired because of his comments. He stated, "Yeah, looking back on it and looking forward, it’s a great experience. It’s such a great experience for me, so, yeah, I wouldn’t have wanted to be recast. But I’m going to earn it back." Mel said that he'd do that by "just by being myself and being fair and apologetic and honest."

Mel also shared that he's changed as a person from his Golden Bachelor experience so far. He explained, "I think once I reemerge…because right now, I’m in it. I was telling one of the producers,'“I just can’t wait to tell my friends what impact this had on me. I know it’s going to be huge.' In what ways? I don’t know yet. I just know from my experience because I’ve done some interesting things, and I know those impact me, and this is going to impact me in a huge way."

Mel added that his perspective on what he thought he wanted in a future partner has changed. He said, "Because the age…I’m 66, so when I see my name and I see my age next to it, I’m like, 'That looks strange.' Because it belies who I actually am. The spirit has no age. It’s true. And also, you can change. That’s the key. It is not too late to change."

Mel also had a message for people who vowed not to watch The Golden Bachelor season 2 if he was the lead. He said, "Well, if you don’t tune in, you’ll never know. So you’ve got to tune in. And again, I’m trying to earn it back. Watch the show and see if I earn it back. Because I apologized [on night one]. You have to be earnest in your work to get the trust back."

Mel continued, "Everybody there is smart, and they can see through you if you’re lying or you don’t mean what you say. That’s why I say tune in. Hopefully the show will show that the women that are in their golden years, that are doing these amazing things. It’s inspirational."

Although The Golden Bachelor season 2 is still filming, Mel is optimistic that he could find his person during the show. He said, "Yeah, could be. There’s some wonderful women. They’re amazing. There are five [right now] that I really connect with and I got to find out that they’re connecting with me. That’s the important part."

Mel went on to say, "So, my partner could be there. Last night was a rose ceremony, and you have to make some tough decisions. You don’t want to see them go, because you know their stories. It hurts. I didn’t think it would hurt. It hurts."

Mel shared that he's already learned a lot from his Golden Bachelor experience. He said, "But it’s been such a great experience. It’s life-altering for me. I had dinner with Jesse Palmer before the filming began. I go, 'Hey, would you do it over again?' And he goes, '20 out of 20.' If someone were to ask me, I’d go, '20 out of 20.' It’s that good. And I’ve learned a lot."

Mel concluded by admitting that his ageist comments were wrong. He said, "Those [opinions and comments] were a mistake by me. It’s unfair. It’s insensitive, like I said. And I want to earn it back. I have to earn it back every single moment that I’m on the show."