Two weeks after ‘Bachelor’ host Chris Harrison confirmed he wouldn’t be hosting the ‘After The Final Rose’ special, Emmanuel Acho was named as a replacement.
Emmanuel Acho will be hosting The Bachelor: After The Final Rose special in place of Chris Harrison. The 30-year-old was confirmed by ABC on Saturday, Feb. 27 just two weeks after Chris confirmed he would be “stepping aside for a period of time” following a racism scandal involving his comments about season 25 Bachelor contestant Rachael Kirkconnell. After photos went viral of Rachael attending an Old South-themed party in college, Chris attempted to minimize the backlash in an interview with Rachel Lindsay on Extra.
Chris later apologized for the interview comments in a lengthy Instagram statement. “I have spent the last few days listening to the pain my words have caused, and I am deeply remorseful. My ignorance did damage to my friends, colleagues and strangers alike,” he wrote on Feb. 13.
Emmanuel will be interviewing current Bachelor Matt James as well as the final three women, Bri Springs, Michelle Young and Rachael Kirkconnell. during the one hour special. “It’s both an honor and privilege to be hosting After the Final Rose. This is an incredibly pivotal episode on one of the most storied shows in television history,” Emmanuel said in a emailed statement to HollywoodLife via ABC. Learn more about former football star set to host the Bachelor’s upcoming special on Monday, Mar. 15.
He’s from Texas
Emmanuel was born on November 10, 1990 in Dallas, Texas. His parents, Dr. Sonny and Christie Acho were immigrants from from Isuikwuato, Nigeria, and have three other children. His father Sonny, who is a mental health professional, was also a pastor at the Living Hope Bible Fellowship Church. Emmanuel attended St. Mark’s School where he began playing football, later enrolling at the University of Texas.
He’s a former football star
After playing football in both high school and college, Emmanuel was drafted by the NFL in 2012. He first joined the Cleveland Browns, and was later traded to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2013. After being released that same year, he signed was signed to the New York Giants practice squad before once again returning to the Eagles in 2015.
He has a popular YouTube series
Outside of football, Emmanuel rose to prominence as best selling author in 2020 after releasing Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man. The book was also a launching pad for his popular YouTube series of the same name where he addresses the topic of race in America. He describes his series as “a safe place to have the uncomfortable conversations about race that many people have never been able to have.”
“Like you and so many other Black and Brown brothers and sisters, I was grieving,” he said after the death of George Floyd, which also inspired the series. “I didn’t know if I should scream, if I should cry, if I should weep. But I said, ‘You know, Emmanuel, I cannot continue to be frustrated and complain about something unless I’m trying to provide us some solution,” he also said. He was also a guest on Oprah Winfrey’s Apple TV+ series The Oprah Conversation.
Rachel Lindsay suggested him
Just days before ABC named Emmanuel as the host of the upcoming After The Final Rose special, Bachelorette alum Rachel Lindsay suggested he would be a strong choice. “For AFTR, [my husband] Bryan [Abasolo] and I both talked about this — we think Emmanuel Acho would be fantastic,” she said to People magazine on Feb. 24. “[He’s] very outspoken about racial injustice, for social justice, and has pretty much been the person who said, ‘I can have these uncomfortable conversations, and people trust it.’ Who better to lead it? [He’s] someone who’s not involved with the franchise, no ties, no bias — I think it’d be great,” she echoed.
He dated Yvonne Orji
Emmanuel began dating Insecure actress Yvonne Orji, 35, in 2018. The couple attended several events together — including a premiere for Night School — before calling it quits in 2019. “I am newly single,” she said on social media shortly after the break-up, later confirming the pair were never intimate due to her strong religious beliefs.