Former 'Bachelorette' Star Meredith Phillips Claims She Was Drugged, Sexually Assaulted on Show
Meredith Phillips, the star of "The Bachelorette" Season 2, is claiming that the show hired a masseuse who drugged and then sexually assaulted her during production in 2003.
Phillips went public with the story for the first time on Reality Steve's podcast. She talked about how she told producers she wanted to relax and they brought in a masseuse, who gave her an unknown pill.
"I just assumed it was an aspirin or something to loosen up my back, or Tylenol, or something. And it definitely wasn't that, that's for sure," Phillips said.
"The last thing I remember was she got naked and she was in the tub with me, and rubbing my back and rubbing areas probably she shouldn't have. And then I was put in bed. I woke up naked. Don't remember much."
Phillips also said that another person working on the show at the time had confided she'd also been "roofied and in a hot tub and kind of accosted" during production.
This isn't the first time the "Bachelor"/"Bachelorette" franchise has been dogged by accusations of sexual assault. Last summer, "Bachelor in Paradise" shut down for a time after a contestant was accused of sexual assault but an investigation found no misconduct. New rules about alcohol and sex were put in place to avoid future situations.
Though Phillips wanted to stop filming the show after the alleged assault, but wanted to finish her season. She also didn't report the incident because she "wanted to protect the franchise, which is f---ed up."
In the years since, Phillips has done her best to put it behind her.
"I have worked through it and thrown it in the back of my mind," she said. "I had no control. Zero. I think that was the hardest part for me, that I couldn't even lift my arms to say no."