Update on September 21 at 6:10 p.m.
“NordicTrack is no longer doing business with Brendan and any further business plans have been terminated,” a NordicTrack spokesperson told Us in a statement. “His behavior does not align with the brand’s values.”
Original story, posted on September 21 at 4:00 p.m.
Done with the drama. Brendan Morais may have lost more than 100,000 followers after his stint on Bachelor in Paradise, but he denied losing an ad campaign in a statement to Us Weekly.
After reports surfaced that the 31-year-old ABC star was fired by NordicTrack, Brendan told Us, “While neither myself nor my manager have been in contact with NordicTrack regarding this matter, my partnership was never supposed to be long term.”
Brendan’s August 17 ad with the fitness brand is still on his Instagram profile. The sponsored content was posted one day after season 7 of BiP premiered, but weeks before he came under fire for allegations that he was in a pre-existing relationship with Pieper James before Paradise and subsequently used Natasha Parker to stay on the beach.
“I wish things had happened differently on the beach and I’m regretful about how I handled things with Natasha,” Brendan’s statement continued. “With that being said, I completely understand companies need to consider reality TV edits in order to protect their brand, I just know there is more to me than what the audience gets to see for an hour once a week.”
According to a source, NordicTrack, who has yet to respond to Us Weekly’s request for comment, “has not expressed any concern over what’s been going on with Bachelor in Paradise” regarding Brendan.
“This comes out of the blue to Brendan as he has not learned about the alleged firing nor has heard from NordicTrack these last few days,” the insider tells Us. “He finished the collaboration with NordicTrack a week or two ago and has only communicated with them regarding logistics.”
The Bachelorette season 16 finalist previously addressed his stint on the ABC series in a lengthy video amid backlash.
“I wanted to apologize to you, Natasha. I never meant to hurt you, I never meant to lead you on. I truthfully and honestly enjoyed spending time with you,” the commercial roofer said on Thursday, September 16, via Instagram. “Pieper and I were not in an exclusive relationship. I absolutely went to Paradise [as] a single man. … As far as Pieper and I having this big, elaborate plan, I’m not the smartest person in the world, for sure, but I feel like it would have gone just a little bit better than it did if we had this plan. Of course, it went horrible in every way.”
Brendan added that he “would not have pursued Pieper or Natasha” if he “wanted the max amount of followers,” explaining, “I would have went after a girl with a million followers.”
“Everyone saying I’m there for TV and all that stuff is just ironic and silly, as they’re mic’d up and in an interview with a camera in their face saying that I’m there for TV, but fully understanding that they’re speaking to a camera that’s going to air their words on TV,” he continued. “I just want everyone to know that I acknowledge where I went wrong and I need to continue to work on myself as a man and learn and try to be a better person. I know that I’m a good person, I know I’m a good man, but I need to continue to grow and that’s that.”
Page Six was first to report news of Brendan’s statement.
With reporting by Diana Cooper
