He made the ultimate gamble when he picked Elora Murger over Nina Rolleston on Bachelor In Paradise, and sadly it didn’t pay off.
On Sunday, Elora officially confirmed she wasn’t interested in Eden and so the perpetually friend-zoned Kiwi decided to walk out of Bachelor In Paradise.
In this exclusive exit interview, Eden reveals how he feels about Nina, what reality show he wants to go on next and a hilarious moment that never made it to air.
Eden, can you talk us through your decision to walk out of Paradise tonight?
After the last ceremony, I had lot of time to think ‘what am I still doing in Paradise?’ I didn’t have any romantic connections and so it was on my mind… I just decided it was time to pull the pin and leave.
There was nothing left for me in Paradise.
Was it a hard decision?
It wasn’t really hard… It was hard because you get to know people and they become your family and it’s hard saying goodbye. But it felt like it was time for me to leave, you can’t push things.
Was it a decision that paid off, have you met anyone on the outside?
Not as yet! I haven’t met that special somebody but I’m excited to get to know people.
You were pretty keen on Elora but she wasn’t interested. Tonight she explains that all to you, did that conversation hurt?
It didn’t hurt me because we had already talked about it. I knew straight after the date that there wasn’t going to be a romantic connection between us and it was more friendship.
It was surprising that we had that conversation again. I knew after the date that it wasn’t going to be romantic, and that was playing a part in me wanting to leave.
Elora rejected Eden but he says he’s all good with it.
You faced a lot of backlash for picking Elora over Nina, how did you feel about that choice especially since that gamble didn’t pay off?
I still feel good about that choice. I don’t regret that decision because that decision was something I had to do for myself. I felt that we spent a lot of time together and we definitely had feelings for each other.
Certain things happened and I needed a few answers to some things and I didn’t feel like I received the answers that I needed to confirm what we had.
I didn’t make the decision to choose Elora over Nina because I just met Elora! That decision was more a me decision for myself. Even though it was the hardest decision I’d made in Paradise.
When we spoke to Nina she was pretty gutted over what happened, where are you at with her now?
I have no bad feelings towards Nina, I still care about her. She has some things against me, which is understandable but over time, hopefully she can move past that.
I’ve apologised for hurting her feelings but I don’t know what more I can say. There’s no resolution and I’m not going to continue to beat a dead horse. I’m sorry she had to go through that but I do wish her all the best, she’s an amazing girl.
You guys had a different approach towards intimacy and kissing on national television, when she flagged that she didn’t want to pash you until the end how did that play out for you?
I always respect people for their beliefs and convictions, so when we had the conversation about it a lot of people misconstrued me talking about intimacy or kissing – which wasn’t the case. I had no problem with not kissing… obviously I wanted to kiss her.
It was more about the way that she was towards me. Affection to me isn’t just kissing, it can be something as simple as holding hands and feeling that this person cares about you. Affection is also part of a relationship and I felt like I wasn’t being catered to in that regard.
Despite the fake love letter scandal, Eden says he’s mates with Elora.
You also landed in hot water after writing a fake love letter to Elora, why did you decide to do it? And can you confirm the conspiracy theories that Sam and Tara wrote it and you just covered for them?
I can only talk about my part in writing the letter…
Does that mean there are several parts?
You can take it how you will! But I own up to my own actions and what I’ve done. I was involved in writing a letter and it wasn’t the best decision that I’ve made in Paradise and it was meant to be taken light-heartedly as a joke.
American Jared and Elora would never be an item! That was the whole joke of it. It was a stupid decision and the timing was also bad because Elora was fixated on Apollo and he chose Simone over her. It was just a combination of the intensity of Paradise. I had to take the heat.
You’re a nice guy for covering because it certainly sounds like there’s more people involved
I don’t know about that… One thing that I do know, I think that integrity is one of the most important attributes to have so I had to take the heat for something that I did. After that, Elora was really hurt and I was really sorry for that. We had a really good conversation and we’re good friends now.
Speaking of conspiracies, was there anything important that didn’t make it to TV?
There’s’ a lot of gems you don’t see and it’s not all drama! There’s a lot of amazing things that didn’t make it to air.
One specifically that comes to mind, do you remember Lenora? [Laughs.]
So, there was one night where Laurina, Blake and I were sitting down and she said to me, ‘I dare you to kiss that toad that was just jumping by.’ I grabbed it and I said, ‘YOU kiss it! I’ll grab it.’ And she kissed the toad but it didn’t turn into a prince unfortunately.
Funnily enough, the whole cast got called to a safety meeting about how poisonous toads are and they can potentially kill you.
Eden wishes Nina all the best.
What about the booze in Paradise? It looks like you always have so many delicious cocktails. How much would you drink every day?
Obviously there’s a duty of care so you’re not getting inebriated.
But it’s really nice to have these beautiful cocktails that Wise was making, he’s amazing!
What about the proposal at the end – who do you think is getting down on a knee?
My prediction is that Luke and Lisa come back! I’d like to see that, like ‘Oh yeah, we were just in the neighbourhood!’
What’s next for you?
I’m planning to move to Melbourne and pursue more creative ventures. I DJ and make music and there’s a lot more opportunities there for that. I’m excited to get out and about and date!
Are you a Tinder type or a real-life guy?
I think you can meet anyone anywhere! I don’t have any rules as to where I can meet a person.
Are you done with reality TV now?
I’m planning on having a break but if they need someone for Survivor, I’d been keen. I’m pretty good with my hands.
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