The Bachelorette star Jenn Tran is weighing in on contestant Sam M.’s accusations that he’s getting a bad edit on the show.
“Listen, nobody can put words in your mouth,” Jenn, 26, shared during a recent episode of SiriusXM’s “Love to See It” podcast. “As much as a TV edit [can do] … no one can give you a villain edit in some way, which is what people are claiming.”
She explained: “You have to own your words because no one’s putting words in your mouth. You are the person that’s saying those things. What I will say is that, sometimes you just gotta take responsibility for the things that are coming out of your mouth.”
Sam, 27, has become one of the more controversial contestants on Jenn’s season thus far. The South Carolina native took home her first impression rose during the show’s July 8 premiere but started to become somewhat of a villain when going head-to-head with fellow housemate Devin.
Bachelor Nation viewers have had mixed feelings about Sam, with some claiming he starts making out with Jenn to forgo a serious conversation. However, Sam got vulnerable for the first time during the Monday, July 29 episode that he was cheated on during his past engagement.
As episodes continue to air, Sam’s mom has taken to social media and claimed in a since-deleted Facebook post that he’s “a good guy regardless of how he is portrayed.”
His dad also shared a lengthy message via social media, alleging that Sam is “a complete wreck” over his portrayal on the show.
“Sam has (mostly) been the favorite with the first impression rose, etc,” he wrote, in part, according to several outlets, claiming that the the network is painting his son “as this horrendous guy in order for Jenn not to look like a complete idiot” if she doesn’t pick him.
Us Weekly has reached out to ABC for comment.
Prior to the start of her season, Jenn spoke with Us Weekly exclusively about Sam — and why he was the only one she give a “feral” kiss fom on night one.
“Throughout that night, I was just like, ‘Who am I going to give the first impression rose to?’ And I kept thinking back to Sam, because we had such an easy flowing conversation,” she recalled. “It was easy to give him that rose, because I just felt so comfortable, and I knew that there was going to be potential there.”
The Bachelorette airs on ABC Mondays at 8 p.m. ET.
