During the “After the Final Rose” special, he revealed that he had broken up with her after the controversy came to light. It's tough to judge whether Harrison's absence had any impact on the “After the Final Rose” ratings, because ABC hadn't done one of those specials since 2018. CBS won the week in the ratings, with an average of 4.5 million viewers in prime time. “The Bachelor,” ABC, 6.1 million. “The Bachelor: After the Final Rose,” ABC, 5.67 million.

Matt James knows he's breaking new ground as the first Black Bachelor. to share a little about how life has changed since he was announced as the Bachelor franchise's first Black male lead earlier this month. As James told Chris Harrison, the support he's gotten from his Black friends has been particularly important. The Bachelor franchise's first Black female lead, Rachel Lindsay, said that she didn't watch The Bachelor before she appeared on Nick Viall's season. RELATED CONTENT:Rachel Lindsay 'Hated the Timing' of Matt James' 'Bachelor' CastingKaitlyn Bristowe: Matt James' Bachelor Casting More Than A Quick FixMike Johnson Reacts to Matt James' 'Bachelor' Casting

If there's anyone ready for Matt James to find love on The Bachelor, it's his mom, Patty. James joked that his mom started a "grandkid counter" as soon as he was announced as The Bachelor on June 12. "[Find] someone who is ready to get on the ground with Matt and change the world, because that's what Matt is going to do. It was Cameron's mom who nominated James for the show, after seeing what The Bachelorette did for her son. RELATED CONTENT:Rachel Lindsay 'Hated the Timing' of Matt James' 'Bachelor' CastingKaitlyn Bristowe: Matt James' Bachelor Casting More Than A Quick Fix'Bachelor' Matt James on How Tyler's Mom Nominated Him for the Show

Rachel Lindsay is pointing out a downside to Matt James' casting as the next Bachelor. Prior to the announcement of James' casting, Lindsay broke down the potential contenders for who could be the show's first black Bachelor with ET's Lauren Zima. Of James, Lindsay joked, "Matt James, we don't even know you." James' season of The Bachelor is expected to film after Crawley's and debut in 2021. RELATED CONTENT:Kaitlyn Bristowe: Matt James' Bachelor Casting More Than A Quick FixTyler Cameron, Hannah Brown and More on Matt James' 'Bachelor' CastingMike Johnson Reacts to Matt James' 'Bachelor' Casting

The former Bachelorette was a trailblazer on her 2015 season of the ABC dating show and believes Matt James' upcoming season of The Bachelor will also affect change. The reception to James as the first black Bachelor has been positive, but some -- including Rachel Lindsay -- are saying it's not enough. "Rachel is in the situation where she's like, 'I'm sick of talking about this, I've said this to the Bachelor world for so long. Let's see the change and let's see it go past just having a black Bachelor. James' season of The Bachelor would shoot after Crawley's season wraps, and premiere in 2021.

LOS ANGELES ABCs fall schedule released Wednesday optimistically details its plans, including a new thriller from the creator of Big Little Lies." I am hopeful that the season will start sometime in late September or early October, said ABC Entertainment President Karey Burke. ABC has backups available if needed, Burke said, including unscripted fare it ordered at the beginning of the shutdown. Jimmy Kimmel, ABCs late-night host, was announced Tuesday as the events emcee and producer. I couldnt be happier with the choice of Matt as The Bachelor. And this is just the beginning," Burke said.

Following a petition urging ABC to address a lack of diversity on its enormously popular reality dating franchise, ABC has cast the first black "Bachelor." "Matt has been on our radar since February, when producers first approached him to join Bachelor Nation, as part of Clare's season," ABC Entertainment President Karey Burke said in a statement. During that time they've cast 40 season leads, yet only one Black lead. And in 45 presidents there's been one black president," Lindsday said. We feel so privileged to have Matt as our first Black Bachelor and we cannot wait to embark on this journey with him.

This image released by ABC shows Matt James, who will be the next bachelor on the 25th season of the romance reality series "The Bachelor." (Craig Sjodin/ABC via AP)NEW YORK ABC has named Matt James, its first black Bachelor to lead the network's long-running dating competition show. The casting was announced Friday on Good Morning America.James, a 28-year-old from North Carolina, was originally chosen to compete for Clare Crawley's affection on The Bachelorette, but filming was scrapped in March due to the coronavirus pandemic. Good Morning America says James founded an organization in New York City that finds creative ways to engage children from underserved areas. The show has been under pressure for years to be more diverse and cast a black "Bachelor."

The news was revealed Friday morning, and makes James the franchise's very first black Bachelor in its 18-year history. James' season will also be a milestone as the show's landmark 25th. Notably, Weber's season had the most diverse cast of women yet; about a third of contestants were women of color. Many fans were hopeful they would see the first black Bachelor on season 24 because Mike Johnson, who appeared with Weber on Brown's Bachelorette season, was a fan favorite. To nominate someone or apply for James' season, head to https://bachelornation.com/apply/.

The 28-year-old was announced as the first-ever black Bachelor on Good Morning Americaon Friday, after days of calls from fans -- and former BacheloretteRachel Lindsay for the franchise to diversify amid the Black Lives Matter movement. In addition to being the first black Bachelor, James is also the first Bachelor in 12 years to be cast without previously appearing on The Bachelorette. Season 12's Matt Grant was the last man to be cast as Bachelor from outside the franchise, back in 2008. James has also spoken out in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, and attended protests fighting for racial equality. If you can positively influence these students at this age, you can potentially change the course of their lives," James told DeacLink.

Before Friday, the former Bachelorette remained the only black lead in Bachelor franchise history. "The only reason people are into Matt James is because people are into Tyler. We don't know anything about Matt James other than the fact that he's affiliated with Tyler." Lindsay said she was expecting to hear from the Bachelor franchise about her suggestions within the next week. RELATED CONTENT:Who Is Matt James: 5 Things to Know About the First Black 'Bachelor''The Bachelor' Reveals First Black Lead Ever For Season 25Rachel Lindsay on Who Could Be First Black 'Bachelor'

While it was once thought that Mike Johnson would be the first black man to lead a season of The Bachelor, he couldn't be more thrilled for Matt James. "I just want to give a huge shout out to Matt James," he began. Johnson also gave "a huge shout out to ABC" for finally casting a black man on the show. Giving one last shout out to James, he concluded his video, "And Matt, do your thing, homie." "I was extremely vocal about Mike Johnson and how he checked all the boxes and it doesn't make sense why he is not the lead.

On Friday, host Chris Harrison answered a fan asking about what James' announcement meant for Crawley's season. Clare Crawley's Season Is Expected to Film This SummerIn an April interview with ET, Harrison assured fans that The Bachelorette was still their No. Some of Her Contestants Are Being RecastAs the coronavirus outbreak continued, production knew they would have to recast some of the men on Crawley's season due to scheduling. Matt James' Season Is Expected to Film This FallThe early announcement of James as Bachelor doesn't mean his season will film any earlier. RELATED CONTENT:Rachel Lindsay Reacts to Matt James' Casting as First Black 'Bachelor'ABC Exec: Matt James 'Bachelor' Casting Was Not Response to RachelWho Is Matt James: 5 Things to Know About the First Black 'Bachelor'

Matt James' Bachelor journey started off in a bittersweet way. James was already familiar to some Bachelor fans for his ties to Cameron, who was runner-up on Hannah Brown's season. Even back then, ET asked James about the possibility of being the Bachelor, if things didn't work out with Crawley. James' season of The Bachelor is expected to film after Crawley's and debut in 2021. RELATED CONTENT:Tyler Cameron and Hannah Brown on Matt James' 'Bachelor' CastingRachel Lindsay Reacts to Matt James' Casting as First Black 'Bachelor'ABC Exec: Matt James 'Bachelor' Casting Was Not Response to Rachel

The Bachelor team is making a pledge after casting their first black Bachelor. Following the announcement on Friday that Matt James would be the franchise's first black male lead, executive producers of The Bachelor released a statement addressing the franchise's lack of diversity. "We are excited to move forward with both Matt James as the new Bachelor and Clare Crawley as our next Bachelorette. Host Chris Harrison also took to Instagram, writing, "Congrats Matt James! RELATED CONTENT:Rachel Lindsay Reacts to Matt James' Casting as First Black 'Bachelor'Mike Johnson Reacts to Matt James' 'Bachelor' Casting'Bachelor' Matt James on How Tyler's Mom Nominated Him for the Show

Fans are hoping we'll see a black Bachelor for season 25 -- and Rachel Lindsay has some thoughts. Over 70,000 viewers and counting have signed a Change.org petition for The Bachelor to cast a black lead for season 25. I'm told they have a reason," Lindsay says, "because I was definitely up in arms when I found out it wasn't going to be him." "If that's what it takes, bringing somebody who's not affiliated with the franchise, I'm for that. RELATED CONTENT:Rachel Lindsay & Bryan Abasolo Had 'Tough Discussions' About RaceRachel Lindsay on the BTS Reason Mike Johnson Wasn't 'Bachelor'Rachel Lindsay Says 'Bachelor' EP Told Her They Want 'Change'