Who Is Evan Bass’ Ex-Wife Marie?

ABC/John Fleenor Bachelor Nation's Evan Bass appears on a 'Bachelor in Paradise' reunion special.

Marie Bass was a recent guest on Reality Steve’s podcast, revealing new details about the divorce of her ex-husband Evan Bass from his current wife, Carly Waddell. During the interview, Marie claimed Waddell left Bass nearly two years before announcing their split.

While Bass and Waddell’s relationship has been public since they met and were later married on Bachelor in Paradise, the same cannot be said for his first marriage. Much is not known about Bass’ first marriage and wife, other than the three sons they share.

Now, she has revealed new details about herself and her relationship with the former couple. Here’s what you need to know:

Marie and Bass Were Married for Nine Years and Share Three Sons

Marie and Bass were married in 2004 after being set up on a blind date just months earlier. After their wedding, Bass adopted Marie’s son Nathan, now 19, and they went on to welcome Liam, 15, and Ensley, 12. However, after nine years of marriage, the former couple split.

Of their divorce, Marie said to Reality Steve, “It was a very mutual decision to get the divorce and really once we were divorced, we actually got along so much better. And I feel like we really co-parented well.”

While conceding no one wants to get divorced, she said, “It was as smooth as it could be probably.”

They set up a week-on and week-off custody arrangement. “The boys love being with their dad and they love being with me and it’s perfect and we only live five minutes from each other,” she added.

However, their dynamic shifted after friends from church nominated the former erectile dysfunction specialist who then went onto Jojo Fletcher’s season of The Bachelorette despite Marie’s preference that he not.

Marie Has Apologized for Calling Bass a Deadbeat Dad

Marie admitted to Hollywood Life in 2016 that she called Bass a “deadbeat dad” during a now-deleted Facebook post.

“I was really angry cause I read an article at the time about Evan being this amazing dad that packed lunches and helped with homework while other guys [fiancée Carly Waddell’s] age were in bars. I got so angry cause at the time, he really didn’t see the kids at all ever,” Marie told the outlet. “So I was really frustrated cause it was so not the truth. I wrote [the Facebook post] in March which was originally during The Bachelorette filming. I was angry and upset and then I took it down in 7 minutes.”

She told the publication that she quickly deleted it but someone must have grabbed the post and reshared it months later. She did specify her mention of being deadbeat was based on time spent with the kids and not child support owed. However, after he returned from Bachelor in Paradise, he maintained their typical custody agreement of equal time.

Now, years later, she has told Reality Steve she has apologized to Bass numerous times. She said, “I think I was so pissed off that he left for so long and then came back and wanted things, wanted, it felt like he really wanted the boys to be integrated into his new life with no respect for me as their mother. He just started making decisions without me and that really upset me, because we for so long had been making decisions together as their parents.”

Marie Has a Tenuous Relationship with Waddell

Blaming it on her red hair, Marie admitted she “popped off” about Waddell. During season three of the dating franchise, Waddell made disparaging remarks about Bass before she reciprocated his feelings.

“I think I said that she was, had no class and no character because of what she said on national television and that he shouldn’t marry her. I said that publicly on social media I think,” revealed Marie. “I had some anger moments where I just was like this is absolutely crazy, this can’t happen, she is a trainwreck.”

While she has repaired her relationship with Bass, she never made any progress with Waddell though they have encountered each other at school functions for Marie’s sons. As she put it, “I don’t think she could ever get over me calling her out on the way she behaved on national television.”

Despite acknowledging the difficulties of being a young mother with its changes in hormones, she seemingly issued further criticism. Waddell has expressed loneliness in her first posts on social media following news of her split from Bass, despite Marie’s claims Waddell actually left the father of five around February 2019.

“Well, she’s been alone for two years and so I just, that kind of stuff just turns my stomach a little bit, because she chose to be lonely because she left him and that is her choice so yeah, it is lonely and you know, she can feel lonely,” Marie said. The equestrian added, “She can voice it that she’s lonely and that’s great and she needs to work through that and I hope she heals.”

She continued, “But she did choose this and I know for a fact Evan didn’t want it. So I don’t think it’s fair to, I don’t think it’s fair for her to broadcast that ‘oh woe is me,’ because she’s been pretty happy for the past two years and they haven’t been together.”

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