The 7 Messiest Breakups in Bachelor History

Josh Murray and Amanda Stanton are just the latest couple in the franchise to break up in truly dramatic fashion

By Tierney Bricker Mar 30, 2017 6:08 PMTags
Amanda Stanton, Josh MurrayRick Rowell/ABC

First come the cameras, then comes love, then come the tabloid headlines!

The Bachelor franchise's couples are no strangers to speculation and attention continuing to surround their relationships once filming ends, and Bachelor in Paradise season three's Josh Murray and Amanda Stanton are no exception, with the details of their messy split making headlines.

Following  their January split, things have gotten nasty between the former couple, despite a brief reconciliation, with Josh's assistant telling E! News Amanda had allegedly body-shamed her and refused to return the car Josh bought for her. Amanda has denied the claims, telling us, "He's the worst. Everybody warned me."

Of course, Josh and Amanda are far from the first Bachelor couple to end their relationship in truly dramatic fashion. Here are seven of the franchise's messiest post-show splits....

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1. Jake Pavelka and Vienna Girardi: Who could forget their iconic trainwreck of a sitdown interview with Chris Harrison about their break-up in 2010? "You are a fame whore is what you are," Vienna said, while Jake told his former fiancé, "I'm disgusted with you." He accused her of undermining him, while she said he treated her like a child and was mean to her. it also gave us this iconic line from Jake: "Please stop interrupting me!" But they weren't done yet, as  they once again appeared on-camera together on the second season of Bachelor Pad, with Jake joining the show, he said, to make amends and get closure. Vienna, who was competing with her boyfriend, Bachelorette contestant, Kasey Kahl, had no interest. (Those two also had quite the tumultuous relationship AND split.) 

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2. Jason Mesnick and Melissa Rycroft: Arguably one of the franchise's most dramatic moments ever? When Jason broke up with Melissa during the After the Final Rose special in season 13, admitting he made the wrong choice in the finale and wanted to give things with runner-up Molly another shot. While Melissa was seriously pissed at the time, calling him "a bastard," it all worked out in the end. Jason and Molly are married with two kids, and Melissa is happily married to Tye Strickland, and  they have three children.

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Inside Josh Murray and Amanda Stanton's Nasty Split: His Assistant Tells All
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3. Michael Stagliano and Holly Durst: The on-and-off again Bachelor Nation couple competed on Bachelor Pad season two together...where she started falling for fellow contestant Blake Julian while dealing with her feelings for her ex-fiancé. However, Michael and the viewers were stunned when Holly and Blake announced they were engaged during the live finale. Yeah, that is how they decided to tell Michael, who sat there speechless before asking for some water. Heartless move? For sure. Great TV? Yep!

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4. Byron Velvick and Mary Delgado: While it may be hard to remember way back to 2004 these two made headlines when she was arrested for allegedly assaulting the season six Bachelor in 2007. They stayed together for two more years despite the incident.  

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5. Ben Flajnik and Courtney Robertson: It's never a good omen when the Bachelor admits to dumping his final pick in between the filming of the finale and the After the Final Rose special, which is what the season 16 star did. Though they briefly reconciled for nine months, they ended their engagement after "ups and downs" and cheating rumors. But their post-split relationship only worsened, with Courtney spotted out with his friend and Bachelorette alum Arie Luyendyk Jr. right after the breakup. Courtney later wrote a tell-all, I Didn't Come Here to Make Friends, which Ben was reportedly not too happy about.

ABC/Agustin Murillo

6. Marcus Grodd and Lacy Faddoul: Though they found love on Bachelor in Paradise season one, and got married in the season two premiere, it turned out they were never legally wed. "When we came back, we were supposed to start the paperwork," Marcus revealed, "but she stalled." He then accused Lacy of ghosting him, saying she became "a runaway bride." 

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7. Andi Dorfman and Josh Murray: Surprise, his split from Amanda isn't Josh's first messy breakup in Bachelor Nation. Though he proposed in the season 10 finale, the couple called off their engagement after less than year. In her book, It's Not Okay: Turning Heartbreak Into Happily Ever After, Andi accused Josh of sometimes being "an emotional abuser" and recalled verbal abuse, alleging he called her "a whore," and was controlling. Josh denied all of Andi's claims when he was on Bachelor in Paradise

Which Bachelor breakup surprised you the most?