Josh Seiter, the contestant from Season 11 from The Bachelorette who was reported dead at age 36 is, in fact, still very much alive. The man who appeared on Kaitlyn Bristowe’s season of the reality dating show took to Instagram to personally confirm that he was the victim of a cruel prank when his social media account was hacked.
Addressing fans who were upset by the false reports that he had passed away, Josh Seiter said on Instagram:
Hey guys. As you can see, I am alive and well. My account was hacked. For the last 24 hours, I’ve been trying desperately to get into it. Somebody was playing a cruel joke and mocking my mental illness and the struggles I’ve gone through with depression and suicide attempts, and I’m sorry for all the pain they caused when they made that post. I just got back into my account. I am going to do all I can with my team to try to identify who was behind this, but again, I apologize for the confusion. And I will update you guys as more facts come in. Thank you guys.
While it comes with great relief that such a tragedy did not befall Josh Seiter, it’s understandable that fans were upset at the news when the false report came out August 28. That is a terribly cruel thing for him and his loved ones to have gone through, and hopefully they will be able to track down who was behind the hack. You can view his full statement below.
The false report regarding Josh Seiter did not give a cause of death but alluded to his past struggles with mental health. The statement released on his social media account — at the time presumed to be from his family — offered the 988 SMS Lifeline number for “24/7 free and confidential support for people in distress, as well as prevention and crisis resources.”
Josh Seiter was introduced to Bachelor Nation in 2015 as one of Kaitlyn Bristowe’s suitors. The law school graduate/exotic dancer was eliminated in the first week of Season 11 of The Bachelorette. Seiter has spoken openly since then about his struggles with mental health, calling himself a “suicide attempt survivor” in a previous Instagram post.
Four days before the alleged hacking, The Bachelorette alum had made mention of his mental health on Instagram, posting a selfie in which he had a big smile and wrote in the caption that he was, “Surviving depression and anxiety one day at a time.”
This turn of events comes less than two years after the tragic death of another contestant from The Bachelorette Season 11, Clint Arlis. The 34-year-old was found dead January 11, 2022, and was later ruled a suicide, per People. Kaitlyn Bristowe spoke out at the time, calling Arlis’ death a “huge loss.”
If you or someone you know are having thoughts of self-harm, please, call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988.