Bachelor villain Cat Henesy-Smith going back for more on Bachelor in Paradise, despite viewer backlash

Cat Henesey-Smith was the girl viewers loved to hate on the Honey Badger’s season of The Bachelor. But despite being shouted at in the street, told she was ugly and fat, and even called the c-bomb, she’s still going back for more on Bachelor in Paradise.

Bachelor in Paradise’s Cat Henesey-Smith isn’t just looking for love this time around. She’s in hot pursuit of redemption as well.

Henesey-Smith quickly became the girl viewers loved to hate when she was wooed by Nick Cummins on The Bachelor last year.

After realising that Cummins — aka the Honey Badger — wasn’t the man for her, Henesey-Smith says she was manipulated into playing up her darker side for the cameras and paid a heavy price for her efforts.

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Cat Henesey-Smith paid a heavy price for her villainous role on The Bachelor in 2018.

Trolls bombarded her jewellery business with negative reviews online. She got death threats on social media. And she couldn’t leave the house without copping abuse.

And yet, somewhat remarkably, she’s signed up to do it all again on Bachelor in Paradise where she will be reunited with fellow mean girl, Alisha Aitken-Radburn, as well as some of the ladies who were on the receiving end of the pair’s cattiness.

Channel 10 faced criticism from fans when it announced Henesey-Smith and Aitken-Radburn had been cast for Bachelor in Paradise.

Their inclusion was seen, in some quarters at least, as an endorsement of bullying.

Henesey-Smith says she wasn’t surprised by the negative reaction to her doing Paradise.

She’s grown accustomed to being on the receiving end of abuse since Cummins sent her packing last year.

Henesey-Smith on a date with Nick Cummins on The Bachelor in 2018.

This year's Bachelor in Paradise cast: (L-R) Brooke, Rachael, Paddy, Bill, Alisha, Brittney W, Nathan, Alex B, Shannon, James, Cat and Cass. Picture: Channel 10

“No one goes into that show wanting to be the villain,” she says of her time on The Bachelor.

“But it became obvious from the questions they (the producers) were asking me that that was what was happening and I went along with it I guess.

“There are things that I did in there that I regret and things that I didn’t regret too.”

“You don’t understand what it’s like in there. You are away from your family and friends. You have no access to the news. And you are surrounded by 20 strangers. It’s hard to explain what happens behind closed doors.”

While Henesey-Smith takes responsibility for stirring the pot, she says others weren’t as innocent as they seemed and had just been given a “better edit” because every good show needed heroes and villains.

Despite the backlash against her, Henesey-Smith points out that The Bachelor’s ratings dipped after she left the show.

“People love to watch drama,” she explains.

“That’s one of the reasons MAFS is doing so well.”

Alisha-Aitken-Radburn, Cat-Henesy-Smith and Romy Poulier were the mean girls on Nick Cummins season of The Bachelor. Picture: Justin Lloyd

Cat with fan favourite Brooke on the new season of Bachelor In Paradise.

Henesey says while she understood that being portrayed as a reality TV baddie would come with some criticism, she was stunned by the level of vitriol levelled at her online and in real life.

“Nothing prepares you for what happens (once the show airs),” she explains.

“The hate didn’t just come via the screen.

“I had people shouting at me in the street. I would go into a bar with my friends and there would be groups of people just sitting there just laughing at me. One girl even dropped the C bomb at me.

“I had people telling me to kill myself. That I was ugly. That I was fat. I stopped going out. I really struggled with it. People get so invested in the show that they don’t realise you are a real person.”

So why on earth go back for seconds?

“It can’t possibly get any worse, right?” she laughs.

“My friends and family couldn’t believe I would go back again after watching what I went through last time.

“But I saw this as my chance to find a guy and to also show Australia a different version of me.”

Henesey says her Bachelor notoriety had hindered her dating life in the real world too.

“I would go on dates and all they would want to talk about is the show,” she sighs.

Paradise, she says, seemed a far more reliable way to meet a genuine suitor who understood what she had been through. Plus it allowed her to rehabilitate her reputation and make amends with some of her former co-stars at the same time.

“I definitely took a different approach to Paradise,” she says.

“I promised myself not to say anything nasty this time. I apologised to the people I needed to apologise to. I was certainly more cautious this time around. But I didn’t want to be boring either.”

Somehow, that doesn’t seem likely.

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