Why Chris Harrison Might Be Done With The Bachelor

If you're a hardcore fan of reality TV, then it would be more than just a little surprising to find out that you haven't seen Chris Harrison work his on-screen magic. Indeed, while some off-script shows come and go — as do their hosts — Harrison has been leading The Bachelor since it premiered way back in 2002, per IMDb. In the years since, he's also taken on hosting duties for The Bachelorette, Bachelor in Paradise, and various other spin-offs of the romance-based original.

With Harrison's talent for teasing upcoming action and ability to calm stressed-out contestants, it's hard to imagine the various Bachelor shows without the host at the helm. However, that's just what happened during Tayshia Adams' season of The Bachelorette in 2020 when Harrison handed the show over to Bachelor Nation alum JoJo Fletcher.

While "rumors swirled" that Harrison's temporary exit was a sign that he "was quitting" the show permanently, according to Page Six, it turned out that he had simply used the time to drop his son off at college. Although the trip itself may have been quick, Harrison had to then quarantine before returning to his hosting gig due to COVID-19 concerns. "This was a pre-planned event done totally in coordination with production," a source told Entertainment Tonight. "There were no surprises."

However, that was followed by another move by Harrison that might confirm that he is indeed getting ready to leave The Bachelor behind for good.

Both The Bachelor and The Bachelorette have a history of taking their contestants all over the world on lavish vacations — at least when the production isn't in lockdown due to a pandemic. However, the bulk of the filming is done in Los Angeles, according to Page Six. That's why alarm bells went off for fans of the show when the outlet revealed in December 2020 that Chris Harrison was "building a home in a wealthy enclave of Austin, Texas — a long, long way from L.A..."

Harrison— who was born in Dallas, per Biography — apparently plans to live in his new Barton Creek home with his girlfriend, Entertainment Tonight's Lauren Zima. Since Harrison's son is enrolled at Fort Worth's Texas Christian College, that would give the star another reason to want to relocate to the area.

Granted, Harrison can certainly afford to build himself whatever kind of enviable abode that he wants pretty much anywhere he wants. But the fact that he's chosen to seemingly settle down in Texas may hint at the fact that he's ready to retire from The Bachelor. But that leaves another big question up in the air: If Harrison does leave Bachelor Nation behind, will JoJo Fletcher take over as the new host?