DeMario Jackson spoke out for the first time about what happened between him and Corinne Olympios on the “Bachelor in Paradise” set where misconduct allegations prompted producers to suspend production earlier this month.
In parts one and two of an interview that aired on Monday night, the former “Bachelorette” contestant told E! News that Olympios was the “aggressor” who instigated oral sex in the pool and made sexual advances towards him. Part three of the interview is scheduled to air on Tuesday night.
“[We were] kissing, rubbing, touching. It’s nothing too sexual yet,” he said. “Things got wild because it was more her being the aggressor, which was sexy…When you have a very attractive girl telling you what she wants, it’s like a very, like, ‘Wow, OK! This is hot. This is very…I like it.'”
DeMario responded with an emphatic “no!” when asked if Olympios seemed drunk at the time. He said Olympios did not appear to be slurring her speech.
“I don’t even know sober girls who can do what she did,” he said.
DeMario said he saw Olympios the next morning and gave her a hug.
“She wasn’t mad. We were hanging out,” he said. “Actually, I offered her a shot, and she said that the production had cut her off from drinking for the day.”
After three more days of production, DeMario said a producer approached him and asked him to leave the show.
“[The producer] goes, ‘Here’s what I’m gonna need you to do: I’m going to need you to bow out. Tell [Chris Harrison] and the crew you that love them, you’re thankful. However, you—you know you’re not there for the right reasons,'” he said. “I’m like, what the f**k? Straight up. He goes, ‘I can’t tell you what I know, but it’s going to be bad if you don’t leave tonight.'”
ABC and Warner Bros. then suspended production and sent the contestants home. After a 10-day internal investigation, no misconduct was found. Filming has since resumed but without DeMario and Olympios.
“It was stressful. For me, mostly for my mother,” DeMario said. “It’s hard to see your mom cry every single day. It was very difficult.”