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The Golden Bachelor star Mel Owens wasn’t able to outrun his past comments about his dating preferences on the season two premiere.
Owens, 66, a former NFL linebacker for the Los Angeles Rams, was announced as the new Golden Bachelor in April. Soon after, he faced backlash for saying he would refuse to date women over the age of 60.
“If they’re 60 or over, I’m cutting them,” the retired NFL player-turned-lawyer said on the In the Trenches podcast in June, while adding that he specifically told the producers of the ABC reality dating show he only wanted women who were between the ages of 45 to 60. “Just being honest,” he admitted.
“This is not The Silver Bachelor, this is The Golden Bachelor,” he said. “They’ve got to be fit, because I stay in shape and work out and stuff. And I told [producers] to try to stay away from the artificial hips and the wigs.”
Owens opened the season two premiere on Wednesday, directly addressing his controversial remarks, saying in a voiceover that he hopes, “these women don’t judge me for what they’ve heard. But I’m sure they will. I just hope I can redeem myself.”
Retired NFL linebacker Mel Owens leads season two of ‘The Golden Bachelor’ (Disney)
During the two-hour episode, he met the 23 senior-aged women, all of whom are competing for his heart and their second chance at love. Of the contestants, 22 women are over 60, and one contestant is in her 50s.
Upon exiting their limos to greet Owens, many of the women openly confronted him about his previous remarks.
Diane, a 71-year-old librarian and passionate hockey player, jokingly asked him: “What the puck was that interview about on that podcast?”
He instantly apologized, with Diane adding in a video voiceover: “I’m here to prove attractiveness and spunk don’t end at 60.”
Carla, 62, a former model, shared a similar sentiment. “I’m here to break your stereotype of women over 60,” she told Owens.
He was later introduced to Peg, 62, a retired firefighter and bomb tech. In her introduction video clip, she showed off her rollerblading skills. “Hey, Mel, no fake hips here,” she teased.
After connecting with each woman, Owens entered the villa to address the group as a whole.
“I sincerely apologize,” he said, acknowledging that his earlier remarks were “insensitive.”
His apology resonated with the women, with one praising him. “He not only owned it,” they said in a piece-to-camera, “he owned it upfront.”
New episodes of season two of The Golden Bachelor air Wednesdays on ABC at 9 p.m. ET.