Bachelor's Chris Harrison on Michelle: "Hot Girls Can Get Away with a Lot"

Chris Harrison knows viewers dislike Michelle, but he feels people have to give Brad time to figure it out. In the weekly TVGuide.com chat with The Bachelor host, he explains how Michelle uses her looks to get her way, why he was surprised Chantal dropped the L-bomb so early on and if Brad will be in a better mood next week.

Please explain why Michelle is still around.
Chris Harrison: People need to understand this was really the first week where Michelle started to annoy him. For the viewer, this has been happening since Week 1, but all he's seen is the sexy woman who always challenges him and then makes out with him. And she's hot. Let's face it, hot girls can get away with a lot. People are so ready for her to go, but you've got to let Brad figure it out.

Bachelor's Ashley S. says she felt defeated going into two-on-one date

Michelle snuck out to visit Brad. Is she allowed to do that?
Harrison: Here's the rule: We keep one camera around until they fall asleep and then we take off. There's always a handler in case something happens, but not a camera. When all the girls fell asleep Michelle stayed up and snuck off. You're allowed to do what you want as long as we know about it.

Ashley S said Michelle was really sweet, so are we not seeing every side of her?
Harrison: A lot of the stuff people are shocked by what she says in jest. She doesn't actually hope Chantal gets her face ripped off by monkeys, but that relationship was very adversarial because they saw each other as the two queen bees and they both were on the top. Brad liked them both and they knew it and that drove them crazy. Hopefully [at the Women Tell All] Michelle will own up and say, "I'm not the crazy b---- everyone thinks I am, but looking back I see how everyone got that impression. Please understand I'm not as crazy as I appear to be."

Bachelor's Chris Harrison says he and the women were surprised by exit of Ashley S.

Were you surprised when Chantal dropped the "I love you" bomb?
Harrison: I was shocked and I think Brad was a little shocked, but was happy to hear it; that was one of the bright spots of the week for him. She seems like she's got this tough exterior, but deep inside she's a vulnerable little woman.

 The bottom seemed to be Alli, Britt and Jackie. Did you think he would choose to keep Britt over the other two?
Harrison: The one-on-one date is a double-edged sword because it's either the best time where you get Brad by yourself and it's a bonding moment, but if it's a dud, it is a stinker. Those dates are so much more glaring now when they go bad. He and Britt have a connection, she just didn't get the edit this week of how much they talk and a part of that is you have to show that there's somebody else that could go home.

Will Brad's be in a better mood next week?
Harrison: Brad's in a much better mood, thank God. ... He was on edge and at odds with himself. Everybody goes through this one point where everything's fine, it's fun, and then everything becomes work for a bit. All the drama and travel added up and he was just in a mood.