Zach Shallcross Explains His Split From Bachelorette Rachel Recchia (2024)

Like many Bachelors before him, Zach Shallcross’ journey to find love will always be tied to his Bachelorette — season 19 co-lead Rachel Recchia.Zach and Rachel fell for each other during the 2022 season and viewers watched the pilot go into their overnight date unsure whether she would pick Zach, Tino Franco or Aven Jones. After his fantasy suite, however, the Austin resident broke things off with Rachel, telling host Jesse Palmer that he felt like Rachel was “very inauthentic” behind closed doors.“Her response — it felt so cold. I thought, maybe, that I meant more,” Zach said on the show at the time. “One of the things I fell in love with was she made me feel, like, special. And I cared for her and I question if any of that was real or if that was just an act.”In September 2022, ABC named Zach the Bachelor for season 27. While promoting the January 2023 premiere, he told Us Weekly that there was “a lack of communication” throughout his time with Rachel.“There was a lot of question marks and a lot of guessing. And when it came down to last season with Rachel, a lot of stuff came to fruition and a lot of big question marks and surprises and that leads to shock,” Zach said. “And for me, one thing that I pride myself on is the fact of having communication throughout [my time as the Bachelor]. So I even told all the women on night one, like, good or bad, please tell me how you're feeling. Because I will. I know what I want out of this and I know what it takes to have that healthy relationship ... communication. And that lacked with Rachel and I last season.”[sendtonews type="float" key="BX5GHNU8ZS-2830029-14453"]Rachel — who split from fiancé Tino while the season was airing after he admitted to kissing another woman — has been supportive of the network’s choice to give Zach another shot at love.“I haven’t had a conversation with him, but I truly think he is a great pick for The Bachelor, just from what I know of him, and I think he’s going to do a really great job,” Rachel told The Hollywood Reporter in September 2022. “Gabby [Windey] and I are both supporting him as lead. We know it’s a really difficult position to be in but can definitely be so worth it if you follow your heart.”Zach, meanwhile, told Us that he “1,000 percent” has more empathy for Rachel after being the one to hand out the roses.“You can never really foresee what the actual experience is. They put you through the wringer and it's an amazing experience, but oh my gosh, you can do and say some of the dumbest stuff that you would never normally do,” he said. “But you were just in this world that's moving a million miles an hour and it's not easy. It’s fun, but it's not easy.”Zach’s journey kicks off on ABC Monday, January 23, at 8 p.m. ET. Scroll through for more from Zach and Rachel on their split:

Like many Bachelors before him, Zach Shallcross’ journey to find love will always be tied to his Bachelorette — season 19 co-lead Rachel Recchia.Zach and Rachel fell for each other during the 2022 season and viewers watched the pilot go into their overnight date unsure whether she would pick Zach, Tino Franco or Aven Jones. After his fantasy suite, however, the Austin resident broke things off with Rachel, telling host Jesse Palmer that he felt like Rachel was “very inauthentic” behind closed doors.“Her response — it felt so cold. I thought, maybe, that I meant more,” Zach said on the show at the time. “One of the things I fell in love with was she made me feel, like, special. And I cared for her and I question if any of that was real or if that was just an act.”In September 2022, ABC named Zach the Bachelor for season 27. While promoting the January 2023 premiere, he told Us Weekly that there was “a lack of communication” throughout his time with Rachel.“There was a lot of question marks and a lot of guessing. And when it came down to last season with Rachel, a lot of stuff came to fruition and a lot of big question marks and surprises and that leads to shock,” Zach said. “And for me, one thing that I pride myself on is the fact of having communication throughout [my time as the Bachelor]. So I even told all the women on night one, like, good or bad, please tell me how you're feeling. Because I will. I know what I want out of this and I know what it takes to have that healthy relationship ... communication. And that lacked with Rachel and I last season.”[sendtonews type="float" key="BX5GHNU8ZS-2830029-14453"]Rachel — who split from fiancé Tino while the season was airing after he admitted to kissing another woman — has been supportive of the network’s choice to give Zach another shot at love.“I haven’t had a conversation with him, but I truly think he is a great pick for The Bachelor, just from what I know of him, and I think he’s going to do a really great job,” Rachel told The Hollywood Reporter in September 2022. “Gabby [Windey] and I are both supporting him as lead. We know it’s a really difficult position to be in but can definitely be so worth it if you follow your heart.”Zach, meanwhile, told Us that he “1,000 percent” has more empathy for Rachel after being the one to hand out the roses.“You can never really foresee what the actual experience is. They put you through the wringer and it's an amazing experience, but oh my gosh, you can do and say some of the dumbest stuff that you would never normally do,” he said. “But you were just in this world that's moving a million miles an hour and it's not easy. It’s fun, but it's not easy.”Zach’s journey kicks off on ABC Monday, January 23, at 8 p.m. ET. Scroll through for more from Zach and Rachel on their split:

“There are things that you talk about in fantasy suites that are things that aren’t discussed on camera,” Rachel told THR in September 2022. “Even just regardless of [the] conversation, Zach and I both realized once we got behind closed doors that we just didn’t align on certain things. That chemistry we might have thought was there, wasn’t. There were just a couple of things that all came really tumbling down, but ultimately there are just conversations that are private, and that is our opportunity to have them.”

According to Zach, Rachel revealed during their overnight date that she had “concerns with the age part” of their relationship. At the time, the flight instructor was 26 and Zach was 25.

“She was four months older [than me]. Well, I was 25 at that time when we had that conversation. So what I have to say is I’m 26 now, so I’m ready [for marriage],” Zach quipped on The Jennifer Hudson Show in September 2022 about her comment.

Zach told Ashley Iaconetti that Rachel treated him “like a stranger” and asked him “interview questions” in the fantasy suites.

“Everything was just almost, like, a rapid-fire [interview] and everything was never a good answer. And I was just never good enough,” he explained on the “Almost Famous” podcast in January 2023. “And then the night was ending before going to bed and we were just both sitting there next to each other and just like, ‘This can't be true. This can’t be how we see each other, how we spend time together. Does she even, like, care for me, in the same way I feel for her or even at all?’”

Zach said that post-show, Rachel admitted to him that her “heart” was with “someone else at that point” — seemingly Tino.

“And she couldn't communicate that to me the right way and she apologized for that,” he said. “It just wasn't shared with me in, like, the healthiest way. And it led me to believe and feel like I'm being blindsided. So it was tough, but, you know, [I] wish her nothing but the best.”

“My mind went so many different directions because it was like, ‘OK, if this is you, then who was I with on this entire journey?’” Zach told Ashley when she asked if she felt like Rachel was “acting” during the series. “This is my fear for this season — people putting it on for the camera. Like, are you here for, like, the followers or Instagram and this and that or to be famous? Or are you actually open at the idea of finding love and, like, being open to that? And I went through that with Rachel thinking about that afterward. I was like, ‘Wait, which one was it?’ And for this season, I carried that on. I'm just being like, ‘Hey, we're communicating everything good or bad, let me know who you are or it's going to come out.’"

During his January 2023 premiere, Zach threw subtle shade at Rachel, saying she didn’t provide the “honesty and clarity” he needed during their relationship.

“I’m actually shocked at kind of the things I have heard — not only what I heard on your podcast, and mainly that — but even when I heard night one,” Rachel said on “Almost Famous” in February 2023. “All this talk about, ‘I want someone who's authentic on and off camera,’ as if me choosing or feeling stronger feelings for other people somehow made me not authentic or if us not aligning on certain important views, makes him wrong. It's just really honestly shocking to hear him still kind of paint me in this, like, really negative light where I thought at our After the Final Rose, we kind of did make up.”

Rachel added that her “main issue” with Zach was him suggesting she was “acting” or “different” off camera.

“[I] very obviously wasn’t. People watched me, time after time, send people home on the spot when I knew it wasn't right. And I genuinely cared about Zach so much that I wanted to give him this time. And I wanted to see if we can align,” she said. “And when you get behind closed doors, you're like, ‘OK, let's honestly have a conversation.’ … Even after an apology, it's still being painted like this, it just really is so hurtful.”

Without fully revealing what happened during their overnight date, Rachel responded to Ashley’s question about whether she and Zach discovered a “huge lifestyle difference or political difference” in the fantasy suite.

“I think we definitely talked about what a life would look like — how we would raise kids — and I think those conversations do come up. … You start asking those really important questions off camera. And there were things we didn't align with. And I'm not saying that me and Tino and me and Aven aligned on everything, but our views, I think the way we wanted to raise families and the way we wanted to live life just aligned better,” Rachel said. “If you are going into the fantasy suite, and you are not asking those hard questions, then what are you even doing? This is an engagement and this is serious.”

She added that Zach may have felt his overnight was “like an interview” because they had “amazing dates” on camera but didn’t have the same chemistry off camera.

“I think we both just realized these amazing dates we were on, like, that's where [the connection] was coming from. And then when it comes down to it, do we really align, like, can we really see this life?” she explained. “I thought we were both on the same page of, like, maybe we're not. … Did we say that out loud? No, because I think Zach did deserve every single second he got off camera because we did have an incredible relationship and I did want to give him that time. It really didn't matter what I was feeling before that. But yeah, it kind of solidified it for me.”

“It was at this time with Rachel that everything turned upside down. You got your heart ripped out of your chest. How scared are you that that could happen again?” Jesse asked Zach during his overnights episode, which aired in March 2023.

Zach, who claimed he didn’t want to have sex with his contestants on the show, threw shade at Rachel again.

“It’s the last thing I’d ever want to happen. … You will learn a lot about someone — regardless — for better or for worse and unfortunately, I learned for the worse at that time,” he said. “I don’t really feel that with these women, but it’s always in the back of your head that something could happen. I didn’t expect it from Rachel. … Trust the gut, trust the heart.”

The Bachelor was subsequently under fire for having sex with Gabi Elnicki — and telling fellow finalist Kaity Biggar.

After the March 2023 finale, Kaitlyn Bristowe asked Zach if he had more “empathy” for Rachel.

“I have empathy for all previous leads. … There hasn't been one season where everyone has made the right decision or done everything the right way. There's literally no right way. And people are very critical. With Rachel, absolutely, I totally understand the pressure and sometimes you just make the decision that sounds right at the moment and then you can always look back and be like, ‘I did mess up. I should have done things different,’” he said on her “Off the Vine” podcast. “Clayton [Echard], for example, you know, he's someone that reached out to support me and encouraged me during the negativity. … He made a mistake in a very tough boiling point moment and you can't completely fault someone or make huge character claims about a single decision. So I have the utmost respect for everyone that have been put in those positions, obviously, if there's good intent. Unless you’re an a—hole, which there’s a few. … I have a couple on my mind.”

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