ABC‘s next Golden Bachelor star made quite a stir earlier this summer when he commented about his desired 45-60 age range for the women who will be vying for his attention on the senior-aged spinoff of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette.
Here’s what he said: “If they’re 60 or over, I’m cutting them,’” while also noting, “This is not The Silver Bachelor, this is The Golden Bachelor.”
Now, speaking to Glamour, Owens, who is 66, admits of his comments, “I didn’t know that it hit that hard.”
After a friend advised him to “right his wrong,” he explains that he has since realized that his “frame of reference” — referring to last dating before his marriage 26 or 27 years ago — was “incorrect.”
“I’m thinking, to me, the age range was 45 to 60. That’s my age range,” he said. “I’m thinking that’s the gold years for me. My reference, again, was when I was dating at 39, 40. I hadn’t dated in 26 years, so I had no clue. And that’s why I said that comment. I didn’t know. I didn’t know. And I didn’t know that [Gerry Turner, the first Golden Bachelor] got married and then divorced. I didn’t know any of it.”
Owens, who is currently filming his season that will air in the fall starting Sept. 24, said he apologized to the women during production.
“When I first walked in, I addressed it. I apologized to them. I said, ‘It was unfair, insensitive. I want to earn it back. Just give me the chance,’” he said, “And hopefully, these last two weeks I earned some of that back.”
He said many of the women accepted his apology, but then “one of the dates was a roast. It was brutal. They were killing me,” he added. “They’re brilliant,” he said of the women. “It’s shocking how brilliant they are.”
Owens is a 66-year-old former NFL player turned lawyer who played college football for the University of Michigan Wolverines, followed by a nine-year NFL career as a linebacker with the Los Angeles Rams. He is the second Golden Bachelor star since the Warner Bros.-produced franchise has launched its senior-aged spinoff franchise with both the Golden Bachelor and the Golden Bachelorette.