INQUISITR.COM / Entertainment

Ben Higgins Defends Lauren Bushnell, JoJo Fletcher Reacts To Lauren Talking About Her

By Karen de Wilde
Published on: 06:19 PST, Oct 14, 2016

Did the premiere episode of Ben Higgins and Lauren Bushnell’s new reality TV show, Ben & Lauren: Happily Ever After?, show Lauren in a negative light? The premise of the couple’s new show, which airs on Freeform, is that it’ll give fans a look into Ben and Lauren’s post-The Bachelor life. Yet on the premiere episode, which aired on Tuesday night, there was still plenty of talk about what happened during the filming of Ben’s Bachelor season and the ramifications of that, specifically that Ben told both Lauren and runner-up JoJo Fletcher that he loved them. Lauren admitted that she and Ben fought over what happened with JoJo. Lauren then made it clear that she didn’t want to attend JoJo’s After the Final Rose special, nor did she want to meet up with JoJo and her new fiance, Jordan Rodgers, for lunch afterwards.

After the premiere episode aired, Lauren received quite some criticism. Viewers wrote on social media and blogs that Lauren came off as a very jealous and insecure woman. Some people wrote that despite being the one that Ben ultimately chose, it’s clear that Lauren has yet to move on from what happened and concentrates too much on JoJo.

So is Lauren really jealous and insecure of JoJo? Not so, according to Ben. On Thursday, Ben defended his fiancee. In response to a viewer who wrote that she feels that Lauren’s not a jealous and insecure person as the premiere episode made her seem, Ben said that the viewer is correct. He reminded people that there are seven more episodes that will show a more complete picture of Lauren.

Ben also responded to speculation that he and Lauren aren’t really engaged.

Lauren also reacted to the criticism. In response to one viewer who accused her of being very insecure, Lauren said that she wouldn’t describe herself as such, but conceded that she does have her insecurities like any normal human.

Lauren thanked one fan who told her to keep her head up and complemented her on how she’s handling the situation. Lauren said that she doesn’t think people realize how hard it has been for her to navigate post-Bachelor life.

Lauren also denied that she’s jealous. She said that she’s just being honest with people.

What does JoJo herself think of the premiere episode of Ben and Lauren’s show? While it’s not clear whether JoJo actually watched it, one person who did was her friend Becca Tilley. Becca competed with JoJo and Lauren for Ben on The Bachelor. As Ben & Lauren: Happily Ever After? aired, Becca posted a tweet that gave her opinion that all of the talk about JoJo was driven by producers. According to Becca, JoJo is over Ben, Ben is over JoJo and Lauren and JoJo are friends.

JoJo agreed with what Becca wrote in her tweet, pretty much confirming that she has no problem with Ben and Lauren and that she and Lauren are friends.

As previously reported by the Inquisitr, when JoJo was announced as the next Bachelorette, Lauren sent JoJo a tweet saying how happy she was for her.

The premiere episode of Ben & Lauren: Happily Ever After? focused heavily on what happened with Ben Higgins and JoJo Fletcher on his season of The Bachelor. During his season, Ben told both JoJo and Lauren Bushnell that he loved them. When Ben ultimately sent JoJo home and proposed to Lauren instead, JoJo was understandably left heartbroken and felt as if she had been blindsided. During JoJo’s ensuing The Bachelorette season, JoJo frequently talked about what Ben did to her. She admitted that she was afraid of getting blindsided again. When some of her contestants confessed their feelings for her, she wondered if they would just turn around and hurt her like Ben did.

On their premiere episode, Ben and Lauren admitted that the fact that Ben told both women he loved them led to “arguments” and “resentment” in their relationship. Lauren also said that it was hard for her to handle the media and even random people on the street constantly reminding her of what Ben told JoJo. When a producer called and asks Ben and Lauren if they would attend JoJo’s After the Final Rose, Lauren made it clear that she didn’t want to go.

“I have had a friendship with JoJo outside of you and I, since before you and I were engaged, and that friendship remains intact. The place where I get uncomfortable is when it’s you, me, and JoJo because it just takes me back to that day. That was really hurtful for me, and it’s not JoJo’s fault and it’s not your fault — I just don’t know what kind of advice I would offer her.”

After agreeing to go, Lauren and Ben sat down to marathon-watch JoJo’s season. Watching the moments when JoJo talked about Ben was visibly uncomfortable for the newly-engaged couple. Lauren pointed out how much JoJo talked about Ben and that she pretty much called Ben out on national TV.

“For someone who supposedly moved on, JoJo talks a lot about Ben.”

After learning that Ben and Lauren agreed to go to her special, JoJo actually called Ben and extended a lunch invitation. Ben agreed to the lunch date without first consulting Lauren, which clearly displeased her.

“I feel like you said yes for the both of us.”

Backstage at JoJo’s After the Final Rose special, Lauren expressed regret that she agreed to attend.

“I’m starting to wish I had never let Ben talk me into this. This just isn’t my idea of fun.”

During filming, Ben and Lauren sat in the audience. After Ben gave JoJo some advice on how to deal with post-Bachelorette life, Lauren was seemingly mad and ignored Ben, choosing instead to focus on her phone rather than to look at Ben. Ben asked Lauren what he did wrong.

“Did I say something wrong? You, like, wouldn’t even answer me. Did you not feel like it was good or something? I thought it was good.”

The episode ended with Ben Higgins and Lauren Bushnell heading to their lunch date with JoJo Fletcher and her new fiance, Jordan Rodgers. Lauren was shown saying that she’s dreading the reunion. Viewers will have to wait until next Tuesday to find out when Ben and Lauren finally come face-to-face with JoJo in a more private setting.

“Being in the same room with JoJo and Ben all together was extremely uncomfortable and now we have to go to lunch together and I’m completely dreading it. I don’t want to resent JoJo. I don’t want to resent Ben. And I think that’s my biggest fear —I don’t know if meeting up and having lunch will bring back those memories from months ago. A million things could go wrong, and I’m worried about every single one of them.”

[Featured Image by David Becker/Getty Images for iHeartMedia]

Share this article: Ben Higgins Defends Lauren Bushnell, JoJo Fletcher Reacts To Lauren Talking About Her
the bachelorette Ben Higgins jojo fletcher Lauren Bushnell
More from Inquisitr