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Jen Affleck explained why she’s glad that Stassi Schroeder is now the host of the show’s reunions instead of Nick Viall.
In a moment from the Thursday, December 4, special, Jen, 26, admitted she was happy for the change, telling Stassi, 37, “I am so glad it is you because I know you are totally unbiased.”
Stassi, meanwhile, pointed out how her experience on Vanderpump Rules helped her. (She also hosted the Vanderpump Villa reunion alongside Lisa Vanderpump earlier this year.)
“Thank you!” she told Jen. “Well, I have been in your shoes!”
Before Stassi took over the position, Nick, 45, hosted the season 2 reunion, which aired in July. Nick later received backlash for the way he directed his questions toward Whitney Leavitt when she ended up in the hot seat multiple times throughout the reunion.
Nick attempted to get Whitney’s thoughts on the behavior of her friend and costar Demi Engemann, who was not in attendance. The Bachelor alum also asked whether Whitney, 32, thought she was “better than” Taylor Frankie Paul at taking accountability.
“No, I don’t think that I’m the one to judge that,” she said, as Nick fired back, “I’m not asking you to judge it. I’m asking you what you think.”
Whitney clarified that she and Taylor, 30, are “equal” in that. “Equally good or equally bad?” Nick asked.
Nick then took a poll asking which Secret Lives of Mormon Wives stars thought Whitney was good at taking accountability — and she received almost no support.
“It’s so double standard. You just sat here and asked me, ‘Do you feel like you justify your actions based off of your feelings?’” Whitney told Nick. “Well, [Mikayla Matthews] is someone who constantly belittles me and hurts me. So, is she justified in her feelings to treat me that way?”
Whitney felt like she was “being called out” by Nick “constantly,” which he denied. “Personally, I feel like I’ve heard Taylor taking accountability for a lot of things. She does a lot of things too,” Nick replied. “I don’t think I’ve heard you take accountability from what I’ve seen.”
Later that month, Nick defended his approach as host.
“We are up-front that we are fans of the show. So, as the host, I tried to have that balance between obviously being host and being objective,” he explained on the “Viall Files” podcast. “I was also making sure everything was addressed.”
Nick addressed the tense moments shown between him and Whitney when she accused him of being too hard on her.
“I was a bit surprised when Whitney did not like my line of questioning,” he shared. “When it comes to the past two seasons, I think the perceived lack of accountability of Whitney is something that I wanted to have a chance to address with her.”
Nick continued: “Whitney is one of my favorite characters — other than Taylor is probably one of the most irreplaceable people on the cast. She’s one of my favorites.”
Before the season 3 reunion premiered, Nick confirmed his exit as the host due to his upcoming Netflix dating show Age of Attraction. The new project — which he is cohosting with wife Natalie Joy — is on a different streaming service, and that ultimately created a conflict.
“Sadly, though, I won’t be hosting the season 3 reunion. I’m sad because I love those women. I love that show and it was great to be a part of it,” he added in September about not being able to take part in the Hulu show. “But working with my wife with Netflix … you know.”
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives is currently streaming on Hulu.
