ABC/DONNA SVENNEVIKWell, back to the ole mating game.
A federal judge has granted ABC's motion to dismiss a racial discrimination lawsuit filed against The Bachelor and The Bachelorette in Tennessee by two men who said that they both tried out to be the titular rose bearer in 2011 and were passed over because they're black.
But score one for the reality-TV masterminds, because the court ruled that casting choices remain the sole discretion of those working on the show.
"As the defendants persuasively argue, casting decisions are a necessary component of any entertainment show's creative content," wrote U.S. District Judge Aleta Trauger in her decision.
"The producers of a television program, a movie, or a play could not effectuate their creative vision, as embodied in the end product marketed to the public, without signing cast members. The plaintiffs seek to drive an artificial wedge between casting decisions and the end product, which itself is indisputably protected as speech by the First Amendment. Thus, regulating the casting process necessarily regulates the end product. In this respect, casting and the resulting work of entertainment are inseparable and must both be protected to ensure that the producers' freedom of speech is not abridged."
The suit was dismissed with prejudice, meaning it can't be refiled at a later date.
"We felt from the onset this case was completely without merit and we are pleased the Court has found in our favor," ABC and Warner Bros. said in a statement to E! News.
The plaintiffs' attorney hasn't yet responded to a request for comment.
—Reporting by Baker Machado