ABC/Billy Kidd Matt James is the Bachelor for season 25.
Matt James and his dad, Manny James, have been estranged for many years. While Matt hasn’t revealed much about his strained relationship with his father, viewers are going to get to meet Manny on Monday night’s penultimate episode of The Bachelor.
Matt’s parents divorced when he was quite young. Their split is something that has stuck with him over the years. In an interview with Tamron Hall back in January, Matt explained a little bit about his past, and discussed how his parents’ divorce played a role in how he was approaching his time on The Bachelor.
“There [are] very tough conversations that I have with individuals that allude to where I’m at in my life and why it’s been so difficult for me to be in a relationship. A lot of that stems from my dad and my mom’s relationship. I saw what infidelity looked like at a young age. I saw family members that were against the relationship and doubling down on it after seeing the infidelity between my dad and my mom,” Matt told Hall at the time.
Matt didn’t elaborate on his “infidelity” statement, nor did he go into detail about who cheated on whom. However, Matt did share that he ended up being raised by his mom, Patty. His relationship with his dad suffered after the split, which isn’t uncommon when people with young children divorce.
According to Reality Steve, Matt didn’t know that his dad was going to show up at Nemacolin Resort. Matt is extremely close to his mom, who was also on-hand to meet her son’s top ladies. Us Weekly previously reported that Matt is looking for a woman he can “bring home” to his mom.
Here’s what you need to know:
Matt & His Dad Are Set to Have a Heart-to-Heart on National Television
In a preview for Monday night’s episode of The Bachelor, Matt talks about his fears about repeating history, based on what he saw his parents go through.
“There’s still a lot of fear based on what I’ve seen in my family in the past. I don’t want to make the same mistakes that caused my family to be torn apart,” he said in the preview. The edited clip then pans to a sit-down between Matt and his dad, Manny, who was invited to Nemacolin to meet his son’s final two women.
“When I needed you, you weren’t there,” Matt tells his dad, clearly emotional.
“Do you know what I went through with your mom?” his dad responds.
“I don’t want you to make excuses,” Matt adds.
“Nobody’s perfect, son,” Manny says.
Reality Steve Thinks That Things Between Matt & His Dad Will ‘Probably [End] Cordially at Least’
Often times, Bachelor producers are totally game for a good tear-jerker. It seems evident that Matt and Manny’s meeting is going to be emotional — but how will it end? According to Reality Steve, things will probably be okay after the two men talk.
“I think that this meeting between Matt and his dad probably ends cordially at least. I just can’t see this being a complete disaster, because then the show looks horrible in the end for bringing him on without Matt’s consent, and they’re never going to openly say they never should’ve done something,” Reality Steve wrote in his January 26 blog.
“I’m guessing it’s probably a tough conversation they have, probably very emotional, but when it’s over, Matt probably feels better. I can’t imagine for the life of me that Matt calls it a disaster/walks off set/f-bombs production for bringing him on, etc. So without knowing exactly what the final result is, I tend to think it ends up being on the more emotional but positive side. Just a guess,” he added.
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Here’s Why Matt James & His Dad Are Estranged