Emmanuel Acho has accepted the finale rose.
The former NFL linebacker and Fox Sports analyst will be stepping in to host “The Bachelor: After the Final Rose.”
The episode is set to air on Monday, March 15 at 10 p.m. immediately after the finale of the dramatic season.
Acho will take over Chris Harrison’s hosting duties as he sits down with the first Black Bachelor, Matt James, for a post-show conversation that will discuss everything from his season, his final decision, and what he’s up to now.
He confirmed his involvement on Instagram on Saturday, February 27, writing: “I’ve accepted the Rose and am honored to be hosting the @bachelorabc After the Final Rose this year. It’s been a pivotal season, and this episode will hopefully be one of the most storied shows in TV history. Empathy is needed and change is coming. Share the news! I’ll see y’all then!”
The 30-year-old will also touch on the current controversy surrounding the longtime franchise including contestant Rachael Kirkconell, who was called out after photos surfaced of attending an antebellum plantation-themed ball in 2018.
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Harrison, who has been the face of the franchise and hosted nearly every single iteration of it since 2002, temporarily stepped aside on February 13 after coming to Kirkconnell’s defense.
In an Instagram post, he apologized for the “pain my words have caused.”
"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. I have no one to blame but myself for what I said and the way I spoke," Harrison began in an Instagram post.
He confirmed he would not appear on the post-show special stating: "The historic season of The Bachelor should not be marred or overshadowed by my mistakes or diminished by my actions."
Acho will also speak to James' final three women Kirkconnell, Michelle Young, and Bri Springs.
Kirkconnell broke her silence on February 11 and admitted she was “wrong” on Instagram.
“At one point, I didn’t recognize how offensive and racist my actions were, but that doesn’t excuse them. My age or when it happened does not excuse anything. They are not acceptable or okay in any sense. I was ignorant, but my ignorance was racist,” she explained.
On February 26, she once again spoke out in a 7-minute long video on Instagram asking people to stop defending her past actions and promising to dedicate her platform to sharing anti-racism resources.
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