It was the finale twist no one saw coming. Far from finding his happily-ever-after with either Brittany Hockley or Sophie Tieman, Nick Cummins, aka The Honey Badger, aka Australia’s Bachelor, decided not to choose either of them.
It was a move that has turned the 31-year-old former Wallaby into public enemy number one in Australia.
In an effort to sidestep attention as the show went to air, Nick flew to Papua New Guinea for a holiday. But rather than escaping the glare of public opinion, the controversy followed him there when Australian news show A Current Affair sent reporter Reid Butler and a camera crew to confront the Bachelor.
Unsurprisingly, things didn’t go well.
Nick refused to answer questions as he was accosted at the hotel pool. “Just don’t hassle me, I’m trying to have a bloody — trying to chill out, (I’m) copping enough crap from people like you mate so I just want to relax,” he said.
“Do you understand how upset those girls are?” the reporter persisted, to which responded “you’re kidding, aren’t ya?”
His friends rallied around him and the reporter was told in no uncertain terms to leave them alone. The show hasn’t yet aired on television but the makers are promising a ‘fiery confrontation’ and a ‘blow-up’ between Nick and the TV crew.
Now, the under-fire Bachelor has returned home to face the music. But rather than dampening tensions, he’s ramped it right up by telling everyone to “get over it.”
Nick breaks the bad news to Brittany.
Nick arrived at Brisbane airport this week and was escorted by a security team. But it didn’t stop a waiting videographer getting up close and personal.
“I think you owe the (Bachelor) girls an explanation, don’t you?” the videographer asked.
Nick’s reply was swift. “It was six months ago mate… I think we’re all over it… I think you need to (get over it).”
Far from being over it, Brittany and Sophie are still waiting for an explanation.
“It would have been nice to have had a few answers. To have had some support,” Brittany told The Daily Telegraph as it was revealed he had flown to Papua New Guinea.
Sophie shared the same sentiment. “It is hard knowing he isn’t here. He has chosen not to be here, he’s off gallivanting the world,” she said.
In the finale Nick told Sophie he “wholeheartedly couldn’t commit to her right now” and that their journey had come to an end.
In his first interview since the finale controversy, pre-recorded before he flew out to Papua New Guinea, Nick attempted to explain his decision not to choose anyone.
”Going in, I feel like I was almost a boy compared to how I see things now,” he told Australian TV host Lisa Wilkinson on The Project.
“You can think you know what you want and then someone comes into your life and your view of what you thought you wanted gets absolutely blown out the window.
“Why would I go in and start something that has a high potential of three months down the track breaking her heart, you know? I’d rather make a very hard decision then at that point to save a big scar on the heart later.”
He went on to say he “wouldn’t do anything differently.”
Story continues after video: The shock Bachelor finale no-one saw coming.
The same episode also features the final three, Brittany, Sophie and Britt.
“I don’t understand how we didn’t end up together,” Brittany confessed.
Australia has rallied around the heartbroken final two girls, and unfortunately for Nick, it doesn’t look like the controversy is going to die down any time soon.
He has a follow-up live interview with The Project due to air in Australia on Sunday.
