It's been a rough week for retired Los Angeles Rams star Mel Owens.
The former NFL player, 66, was set to headline the second season of the reality dating show, "The Golden Bachelor." However, his future is now reportedly in question due to some off-the-cuff comments he made about women.
The drama began after Owens admitted on the June 4 episode of "MGoBlue Podcast" that he prefers dating younger women.
Ideally, he wanted to see women between the ages of 45 and 60 cast on the show.
"You know, if they're 60 or over, I'm cutting them," Owens recalled telling an executive producer.
MORE: Ex-NFL star Mel Owens tells 'Golden Bachelor' producers he wants to date younger women
Owens' comments didn't sit well with 'Bachelor' fans, who quickly voiced their annoyance online.
"How is it “Golden” if his minimum age requirement is only like 10 years older than some of the regular Bachelor/ette contestants," one person commented on Instagram.
"This was one of my favorite shows. Hearing his comments has ruined the whole point of this franchise," another person said.
"Dear Mel, We don’t want to date men 20 years our senior. Date a woman your own age. Hope this helps," someone else wrote.
Was Mel Owens fired from 'The Golden Bachelor'?
As of Thursday morning, producers had not addressed concerns over Owens' comments, and conflicting reports about his future on the show had surfaced.
On Wednesday, July 2, a famous TV blogger and well-known "Bachelor" spoiler, Reality Steve, reported that the former Rams star had been fired.
"I’m hearing that Mel Owens is OUT as the Golden Bachelor due to recent negative publicity surrounding his June 4th podcast appearance. Expect an announcement soon incl who is going to replace him. Haven’t heard a name yet on who that is. Will update if/when I hear," Reality Steve posted to X.
At the same time, The U.S. Sun reported that producers are upset about the comments; however, he hasn't been fired.
"That tone is the opposite of the direction they want to head in going into the new season," an insider told the outlet, adding that, “Mel doesn't realize how much stress his comments have caused this huge team. It's been horrible."
According to the outlet, the decision to keep him was not unanimous.
MORE LIFESTYLE NEWS:
- Tom Brady and Sydney Sweeney ignite romance rumors
- Michael Jordan's former $9.5 million Chicago home hits Airbnb for jawdropping rental price
- Taylor Swift rocks $50 shirt from her own merch line while in Ohio with Travis Kelce
- NBA draft picks stun with expensive high fashion looks on big night
- Hulk Hogan's new $7 million sports bar will have the perfect name