The reason then-host Chris Harrison started referring to The Bachelor as the “most dramatic” show on TV probably has a little something to do with Jason Mesnick and Molly Mesnick.
Jason, a then-single father from Seattle, first appeared on season 4 of The Bachelorette in 2008. While he was ready to get down on one knee during the season finale, DeAnna Pappas rejected him and accepted a proposal from Jesse Csincsak. (The twosome called it quits in November 2008.)
The account executive, who shares son Ty with ex-wife Hilary Buckholz, went on to be named the lead for season 13 of The Bachelor, which premiered in January 2009. While he originally picked Melissa Rycroft to be his wife, Jason changed his mind after proposing. The show then moved up the typically live After the Final Rose taping so Jason could break up with Melissa and tell Molly, the runner-up, he wanted to be with her.
After the drama unfolded onscreen in March 2009, Jason proposed to Molly that October.
“Melissa is a great girl, but there wasn’t any chemistry,” he told Us Weekly at the time. “So I broke up with her after Christmas, about a month after we wrapped. Obviously, I didn’t want it all on TV, but I had to take the chance if it meant getting [Molly] back. I’d rather have picked up the phone, trust me!”
Jason and Molly wed in 2010 and share daughter Riley. Scroll through to revisit their love story:
