Two black men have filed a class action lawsuit against ABC claiming the network "knowingly, intentionally and as a matter of corporate policy refused to cast people of color” in the main roles of their hit reality shows The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. Nathaniel Claybrooks, 39, and Christopher Johnson, 26, say ABC’s “refusal to hire minority applicants is a conscious attempt to minimize the risk of alienating their majority-white viewership and the advertisers targeting that viewership.”
The men also accuse ABC of purposely rushing them through a casting call in Nashville last year while giving white applicants more attention.
"I only wanted a fair shot at the part. Looking back at how I was treated at the casting call last year, it was clear that that wasn't possible. I never even had a chance,” Claybrooks says.
"In every job opportunity, you are looking to at least have a chance to compete for that job," Johnson adds. "Whenever you feel you are treated unfair or unjust, you are going to speak out."
Warner Horizon Television, the company that produces The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, calls the lawsuit “baseless” and points out that each show has “had various participants of color throughout the series' history, and the producers have been consistently – and publicly – vocal about seeking diverse candidates for both programs.”
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