Nick Viall - Bachelor 21 - Discussion

People who have anxiety around being in front of a camera are the opposite of Nick, IMO. He's a fame whore taking acting classes who appeared on the Bachelor franchise 3 times. If he says he doesn't want to be in front of a camera, he's a liar, IMO. Sometimes you have to watch what people do because it's much more honest than what they say. JMO

mysthelma wrote:
But why would Nick being paranoid of cameras if that is the case puts himself under the scrutiny of the cameras time and time again. He should be laying low away from all things bachelor nation after his recent breakup imo. But like [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] said I think He does love the attention, but also I agree it must have stung if the crowd were cheering for Wells and not him. I think he does appear to not care but he likes to be liked. IMO

I think that Nick enjoys the attention when he's in a good place in his life. However, given that he's clearly not in the best place at the moment, he's been keeping a low profile which is something that he mentioned in the recent Almost Famous Podcast. Also in the podcast, Nick talked about how thinking outside of himself/helping other people are things that help relieve his anxiety and so I could see why he might think that being a back-up dancer for Ben is something that he thought would be a fun, harmless distraction that would make him get his mind off of his anxiety. When Nick agreed to do it, I'm sure that he was very much aware of the fact that he would be playing a supportive role--that Ben was the lead and that he would be in the background--and I'm sure that also played a factor in his decision-making to do it. However, I think where Nick might have miscalculated the situation is that he might not have totally considered the fact that it's really hard to distract yourself by being supportive of others when people and cameras are watching you on stage and judging your every move.

You compare this situation to what Nick said about his mental state when he was at Sharlene's wedding; he said that he was able to look outside of himself and enjoy being supportive of his friends at the wedding despite the fact that it would have been easy for him to dwell on his recent break-up...however, the difference is that Nick wasn't performing at the time and was therefore able to feel good about being supportive of Sharlene and Andy, worry-free. However, I do get the sense that one of Nick's causes for anxiety is the fact that he doesn't currently have a distinct direction in life and is insecure about his current situation which is something that, again, is hard to avoid when you are on stage and have a bunch of eyes on you...even if the intention of participating in the first place was to play a supporting role.

Some people might not agree but my assessment of Nick is that he is genuinely concerned about coming across as a fame-whore and so he does need to be able to justify/make himself feel good about his decisions when deciding whether or not to participate in public ventures. For instance, I remember Nick mentioning in an interview that one of the reasons why he was scared about being the Bachelor was because he was concerned about people dwelling on the fact that it would be his 4th time on the show and he was worried about how that would come across in the public eye; however, his reason for doing the show was because he genuinely felt like he would have regretted turning down the opportunity if he had said 'no' simply out of fear of things not working out. In another interview, Nick mentioned that the reason why he decided to go on the Bachelorette for Kaitlyn's season was because he knew that he had feelings for her and didn't want to live with that sense of 'what it?'--even though he was also aware of the fact that people would judge him for going on the show for a second time. Nick turned down Bachelor in Paradise once because the only person that he was interested in getting to know was the current Bachelorette (ie Kaitlyn) and therefore he couldn't really justify it to himself to go on the show that season. However, he was able to justify it to himself when was asked to do the following season as he wasn't emotionally attached to anyone at the time and he knew that his friends were going to be there and so he basically decided to do it because he couldn't come up with a compelling enough argument to turn that opportunity down. The common theme in all of these scenarios is that Nick is very thoughtful about the opportunities that he takes and that he needs his heart to be in the right place in order to for him to justify taking these chances--opportunities and chances that can easily be used against him as proof of him being some sort of attention-seeking fame-whore which is something that he refuses to be in his mind. However, as long as Nick is aware of his true intentions and knows that his heart is in the right place then I think he's somewhat okay with people thinking whatever (even though he obviously prefers to be liked)...and I can see Nick justifying to himself that the opportunity to play second fiddle to Ben in a lip-synching competition while facing off against his ex-girlfriend is something that is clearly ridiculous, funny, harmless and also allows Nick to be supportive of Ben while still being in on the joke. That being said, it's one thing to feel like you are doing something for well-intentioned reasons and then going up on stage and realizing that you're probably being judged for agreeing to be apart of the insanity because what sane person would want to partake in the insanity in the first place if it weren't just to get attention? I think it's possible that maybe Nick did lose sight of his good intentions while he was on stage and was confronted by the idea that people were judging him...and you combine that with his current mental state, his anxiety and his paranoia, and it's only natural that he was uncomfortable by the whole situation.

I just think that Nick is someone who is hard to understand because it's difficult to understand why anyone would want to willingly put themselves in clearly uncomfortable situations without any shady, fame-whorish intentions involved. But then I think about the fact that Nick is scheduled to participate in a Bachelor Day raffle event where he's going on a two-on-one date with Dean and a stranger who will probably spend the majority of the time asking him about Bachelor-related things that I doubt he really wants to talk about..and I know that the only reason why Nick would subject himself to that level of discomfort is because he's doing it for charity. People can call Nick an attention-seeker all they want but at the end of the day, I know that Nick is always going to make decisions that are well-intentioned and that he knows that he can justify to himself...even if those decisions result in him being uncomfortable and him not being able to hide his discomfort at times. JMO

A lot of people with anxiety are very self-aware of their anxiety that they compensate by putting more of an effort to put themselves out there. Case in point -- look at all the Youtubers who have disclosed that they suffer from anxiety and panic attacks. Having anxiety does not mean you are a social recluse, afraid of cameras. I'd argue that the "unnatural" circumstances can actually be a motivating factor for people to come across more outgoing and more uninhibited than they usually are.

It could be for several different reasons, but I think in Nick's case it has something to do with a need to experience things. He's spoken at length about how he values gaining perspective from his experiences, whether the outcomes turn out in his favour or not. Thing is, he tries these things but admits that he can get in his head. Obviously it's something he needs to work on (and he's even admitted it, so I think he's more honest and self-aware than he is a "liar").

Aria wrote:snipped

I think this is just Nick being Nick. Loving attention, but also not being able to handle it well. IMO.

I totally disagree with the bolded. For someone who has received a TON of hate especially on SM, I actually see it totally opposite and that Nick has handled it very well    He doesn't have a pattern of attacking or lashing out on SM or writing long SM posts whining. So until I see Nick lashing out on SM and lashing out about the attention he does get, imo stating that he doesn't handle attention well is false.

JMO

Chgohighlife wrote:People who have anxiety around being in front of a camera are the opposite of Nick, IMO. He's a fame whore taking acting classes who appeared on the Bachelor franchise 3 times. If he says he doesn't want to be in front of a camera, he's a liar, IMO. Sometimes you have to watch what people do because it's much more honest than what they say. JMO

Okay then, let's examine what Nick does then, shall we? Nick is clearly a shameless self-promoter who only cares about making a quick buck..I mean, the man can't stop schilling, it's embarrassing. He also can't stop attending public events and functions every week and posting photos about every moment of his life on his Instagram--it's almost as if it's some weird addiction that he can't seem to shake. And can you believe all of the personal stories that he shares about himself and other people in the multitude of interviews/podcasts that he still insists in partaking in? It's all pretty pathetic. And of course he had to post about him booking a movie role in a film with a well-known soap opera star even though the details haven't been released yet--he just couldn't keep his ego in check long enough to keep himself from letting the public know that he's made some head-way in his acting career, the gloater...

Oh wait. None of that is true. Oops. My bad...I guess I must be thinking about an alternate version of Nick who actually is a fame-whore.

Personally, I think that if you're going to judge a person's character then it's sometimes a good idea to examine what they don't do and how they choose to conduct their life in the public eye as opposed to assuming that just because someone decides to live in the public eye then that must mean that they are liars and/or generally insincere.

And for the record, there's a difference between being on camera in a bubble/ controlled environment and being on camera when there is a live audience judging your every move in real time and/or when people are taking pictures/videos of you behind your back. Just saying.

Chgohighlife wrote:People who have anxiety around being in front of a camera are the opposite of Nick, IMO. He's a fame whore taking acting classes who appeared on the Bachelor franchise 3 times. If he says he doesn't want to be in front of a camera, he's a liar, IMO. Sometimes you have to watch what people do because it's much more honest than what they say. JMO

Hollywood is filled with people who suffer from anxiety while being live on camera and yet are incredible performers otherwise. A simple google search reveals that IMO. As for being a fameho, IMO every single person on this show is a fameho. IMO Normal people who are not famehos don't sign contracts for life which state they can be humiliated on TV for the entertainment of 10 million people and they can do nothing about it. Whether you sign that same contract once, twice or 3 times, it makes no difference to me. IMO Nick and his fellow famehos Wells, Ashley I, Dean, Alex were there to support the other two famehos - Rachel and Ben in their bid to sing/dance on TV.

Personally, I think Nick could have done a lot more with his Bachelor fame right after his season ended and he and Vanessa could have become a 'Bachelor couple' and made money and shilled anything and everything under the sun before their inevitable breakup. The fact that they didn't and lived a low key life compared to many others IMO says all that I need to know. IMO It's like you said - sometimes you have to watch what people do because it's much more honest than what they say and it goes for everyone in this franchise.

All JMO

coolangel wrote:

Chgohighlife wrote:People who have anxiety around being in front of a camera are the opposite of Nick, IMO. He's a fame whore taking acting classes who appeared on the Bachelor franchise 3 times. If he says he doesn't want to be in front of a camera, he's a liar, IMO. Sometimes you have to watch what people do because it's much more honest than what they say. JMO

Hollywood is filled with people who suffer from anxiety while being live on camera and yet are incredible performers otherwise. A simple google search reveals that IMO. As for being a fameho, IMO every single person on this show is a fameho. IMO Normal people who are not famehos don't sign contracts for life which state they can be humiliated on TV for the entertainment of 10 million people and they can do nothing about it. Whether you sign that same contract once, twice or 3 times, it makes no difference to me. IMO Nick and his fellow famehos Wells, Ashley I, Dean, Alex were there to support the other two famehos - Rachel and Ben in their bid to sing/dance on TV.

Personally, I think Nick could have done a lot more with his Bachelor fame right after his season ended and he and Vanessa could have become a 'Bachelor couple' and made money and shilled anything and everything under the sun before their inevitable breakup. The fact that they didn't and lived a low key life compared to many others IMO says all that I need to know. IMO It's like you said - sometimes you have to watch what people do because it's much more honest than what they say and it goes for everyone in this franchise.

All JMO

I agree. Most people on the franchise are famewhores. It is every bit as apparent with Nick as with all the rest if not more so because of all his BN appearances. We are saying the same thing. I was disagreeing with the attempt to paint Nick as something different than the rest. He's not at all, IMO. He's just on the down side of his 15 minutes having been at it so earnestly for so long with so little to show for it. JMO But, didn't I read he finally has a made for TV movie opportunity?

People will always define "famewhore" in different ways.
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Above is an example of how Nick IMO is NOT interested in using his current "fame" status.

Good for Nick for saying something. I [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] about how appalled I was when I saw that IG post Chase posted, using a photo of himself, tagging and self-promoting and using a tragic event to do so. 

So to answer the question about famewhores... Nick has a ways to go before he gets to that level of famewhore that others display. So yes, there is a difference. JMO

notarose wrote:People will always define "famewhore" in different ways.
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Above is an example of how Nick IMO is NOT interested in using his current "fame" status.

That's just...wow. I mean is that what going on this show does to some of these people? They lose all sense of empathy and sense beyond their next shilling opportunity. My goodness. Kudos to Nick and hopefully he's embarrassed enough to delete it.

coolangel wrote:

Chgohighlife wrote:People who have anxiety around being in front of a camera are the opposite of Nick, IMO. He's a fame whore taking acting classes who appeared on the Bachelor franchise 3 times. If he says he doesn't want to be in front of a camera, he's a liar, IMO. Sometimes you have to watch what people do because it's much more honest than what they say. JMO

Hollywood is filled with people who suffer from anxiety while being live on camera and yet are incredible performers otherwise. A simple google search reveals that IMO. As for being a fameho, IMO every single person on this show is a fameho. IMO Normal people who are not famehos don't sign contracts for life which state they can be humiliated on TV for the entertainment of 10 million people and they can do nothing about it. Whether you sign that same contract once, twice or 3 times, it makes no difference to me. IMO Nick and his fellow famehos Wells, Ashley I, Dean, Alex were there to support the other two famehos - Rachel and Ben in their bid to sing/dance on TV.

Personally, I think Nick could have done a lot more with his Bachelor fame right after his season ended and he and Vanessa could have become a 'Bachelor couple' and made money and shilled anything and everything under the sun before their inevitable breakup. The fact that they didn't and lived a low key life compared to many others IMO says all that I need to know. IMO It's like you said - sometimes you have to watch what people do because it's much more honest than what they say and it goes for everyone in this franchise.

All JMO

I think that my definition of fame-whore is a little different than yours. In one sense, I agree with your interpretation but I also agree with Nick's interpretation of the casting process which is that--with the explosion of social media and schilling opportunities--nowadays people go on the show in order to find fame whereas in the past people primarily went on the show in order to have an experience. I recall Nick mentioning in an interview that when he decided to go on Andi's season of the Bachelorette it was the beginning of social media and therefore he didn't really think much of the fame element that having a following on social media would bring at the time. The reason why he wanted to go on Andi's season was because he thought it would be a cool experience and he was open to the possibility of maybe even falling in love (even though he was fairly skeptical that it would happen). Schilling wasn't a thing back then and neither was the huge obsession with generating followers (at least not to the extent of believing that you could actually make a living off of having a lot of followers on Instagram). In short, I do believe that Nick belongs to the old school of thought...but that doesn't mean that he's staunchly opposed to the new school of thought either in the sense that he's building an LA lifestyle around it. So, yeah, I guess in a way I agree that everyone on the show is a fame-whore to an extent...but I do feel like intention should count for something. Personally, I believe that Nick still chooses to live his life with the same intent that he had when he decided to go on Andi's season: he hopes to live out as many cool experiences as possible and that the notoriety that he gets from his willingness to experience life is just the cherry on top. JMO

And here is an example of Nick's schill EFFORT- 

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