Did Greg Grippo Join 'The Bachelorette' to "Kick-Start His Acting Career"?

Spoiler Alert: This article contains spoilers for Season 17 of The Bachelorette.

In the season premiere of The Bachelorette, it was clear that Katie Thurston had her eyes on a few very eligible bachelors, but she ultimately gave her first impression rose to Greg Grippo, a supposed marketing executive from New York. Although one contestant went as far as to dress up in a catsuit to impress the Bachelorette, her connection with Greg seemed to be unmatched.

But recent accusations have landed the Bachelorette contestant in hot water. After viewers accused Greg of joining the series to boost his acting career, many fans wonder if Greg is on The Bachelorette for the right reasons. While he claims to have joined the competition to finally find someone to settle down with, recent reports suggest that he has ulterior motives. So, is Greg Grippo an actor? 

Greg made all of our hearts smile when he gifted Katie with a macaroni necklace that was made by his niece. Although he comes off as exactly the kind of family man Katie has been searching for, a thread on Reddit suggests otherwise. 

In May, @DeuxMoi posted a screenshot of a long list of allegations against Greg. Along with a claim that he was only using The Bachelorette as an opportunity to gain fame, the user also referred to Greg as a “manipulative liar.” They wrote, “He is not on the show for love, let alone Katie, and his appearance on this show is solely to promote and kick-start his acting career.”

Shortly after the allegations surfaced, @DeuxMoi received yet another submission that detailed a Bachelorette contestant’s alleged behaviors. Although the author did not mention him by name, Bachelor Nation is pretty convinced that the author was referring to Greg. According to them, Greg previously dated their best friend and things did not end well. 

The source alleged, “My best friend dated a fan-favorite contestant on The Bachelorette very seriously for a year and a half and he was awful to her. This sweet shy boy act is exactly that: an act. He really is actually an actor. I’ve personally witnessed him throw a fit and call her a terrible name for wearing a mini dress, so I can only imagine what happened behind closed doors.”

They continued, “He broke up with her, she was extremely upset and then made her Uber an hour back to her apartment alone at 1 a.m. We watched our kind, confident friend turn into a shell of herself and then get thrown to the curb. Of course, his social media is perfectly curated now. He has an image to protect.”

On July 19, yet another unnamed source came forward, this time to The Sun. Someone who claimed to have known Greg for years told the outlet, "His goal was always, always, always fame. He's been trying to get on The Bachelorette literally for years."

The insider said that Greg was initially on Clare Crawley's season, but that fell through due to COVID-19. But before that, he tried to get on Hannah Brown's season.

“He needed a shortcut to success because he is not a go-getter on his own. He's the biggest schemer of all. The way the world is believing this nice boy act is incredibly nauseating and sad for women. So many of us that know Greg are equally shocked and appalled at how different he's coming off on the show. Beyond phony," they said.

While these allegations have not been confirmed, Greg’s social media reveals that he did, in fact, attend William Esper Acting School at some point in time, so these accusations aren’t totally unbelievable. But if Greg really is a wolf in sheep’s clothing, the uncle-of-seven is doing a great job of hiding it.

Greg's Bachelorette bio reads, “Greg considers himself a hopeless romantic, and a perfect first date would be something active like riding bikes, dancing, or going to a concert. Greg wants to travel the world with his wife before having kids, of which he says he wants to have at least six!”

We’ll just have to see how Greg and Katie’s love story plays out in Season 17. You can watch new episodes of The Bachelorette on Mondays at 8 p.m. EST on ABC.