While The Bachelor has certain hallmarks featured across seasons, there were a few that former lead Nick Viall opted against ever stating on camera.
“I’ve got the most roses in Bachelor history, which I’m pretty sure I have,” Viall, 44, joked on the Thursday, February 6, episode of his “Viall Files” podcast. “When I was the Bachelor, we did a bit where I read how many rose ceremonies I [had] and all that — but I definitely don’t wear it with pride.”
Reflecting on his experience, Viall further revealed that he never said the classic “I’m here for the right reasons” line, but did reference the show as a “journey” a handful of times. He also never said, “I see my wife in this room.”
“Zero [times],” Viall said. “Refused. They definitely tried to get me to say it in one episode. I forgot what I came up with, but [I said something like], ‘I see potential here.’ They literally tell you to say it [in] episode two or three. I definitely said something I didn’t mean, but I didn’t say that.”
After two seasons of The Bachelorette and his own season of The Bachelor, Nick Viall found love with Natalie Joy. The couple were first linked in 2019, two years before confirming their relationship. Viall revealed in February 2021 that Joy slid into his Instagram DMs. “It was very romantic,” he joked during an episode of […]
After two failed stints on back-to-back seasons of The Bachelorette and a jaunt on Bachelor in Paradise, Viall served as the next lead for season 21. He got engaged to Vanessa Grimaldi during the finale only to break up with her several months later.
By 2020, former nurse Natalie Joy slid into Viall’s DMs and they started dating. Viall proposed three years later before he and Joy, now 26, tied the knot in April 2024, two months after welcoming daughter River Rose.
Vanessa Grimaldi and Nick Viall on ‘The Bachelor.’ ABC/Rick Rowell
“She’s shown me how to be present. I can be very introverted, and I’ve been accused at times in my life of being aloof,” Viall exclusively told Us Weekly in October 2022 of their relationship. “And aloofness combined with being 6-foot-2 has turned into some people thinking I might be dismissive or rude and I get defensive because I’m thinking, ‘Well, no, I’m sorry. I was just thinking about something else.’ … She has shown me just how important it is to take the time in any moment [to] see people and making them feel validated is really special on a day-to-day basis and especially in a relationship.”
He added of his now-wife, “She’s also someone who really knows how to take breaks. When it comes to disagreements in a relationship, as a guy — not everyone’s the same — but men can be more guilty of trying to fix things without, like, letting emotions get out. And Natalie knows how to get us to take time now if we’re not on the same page early on. And that helps us.”