Viewers have been watching young singles vie for love on The Bachelor and its spinoffs for two decades now. Over the years loyal fans have picked up on some strategic moves the contestants can enact in order to better their chances on the season — things like say you’re there for the right reasons and avoid the drama (or, sometimes, cause the drama). It would seem that the better prepared you are for Bachelor Nation, the more successful you’ll be on the show, right? Not necessarily. Ahead of The Bachelorette Season 19, host Jesse Palmer talked to CinemaBlend about how contestants sometimes get themselves into trouble.
The Bachelorette featuring both Gabby Windey and Rachel Recchia as the leads premieres July 11, and Jesse Palmer has taken over as host of the spinoff after making his debut on Clayton Echard’s season of The Bachelor. In his short time behind the scenes of the popular reality dating show, he said that sometimes contestants make assumptions about how the season is going to go, and that’s when preparations can backfire. Speaking to CinemaBlend’s Sean O’Connell, Palmer said:
These days people have seen so much reality TV that they sort of, quote-unquote, know the playbook, where they think they know the playbook. I know on this show, particularly, what has gotten people in trouble at times is that they maybe pre-game it too much. People have gotten in trouble because they sort of have already anticipated what they’re gonna say, or what they’re gonna do, or how they’re gonna dress, or how they want to be perceived. I think what people generally find out is you don’t have nearly as much control as you think you do, and reality eventually just takes over.
Jesse Palmer admitted that a lot has changed since he was the Season 5 Bachelor in 2004. Social media didn’t exist on the level it does now, where fans have such a big window into the mechanics of the show. Social media has also raised the stakes for contestants, who, regardless of their success on the show, often go on to become influencers. However, as the first-time Bachelorette host warned, we’ve definitely seen some cast members shoot themselves in the foot with their pre-show prep.
On Michelle Young’s season of The Bachelorette, Ryan Fox was handed an early exit when co-hosts Kaitlyn Bristowe and Tayshia Adams found an actual playbook amongst his belongings. The book (which Fox said was written by a friend, not by him) included a list former contestants to emulate, key phrases used often on the show and other tips about how to act.
Bachelor in Paradise also got in on the drama when Brendan Morais and Pieper James were busted for forming a relationship before the show but still going to Paradise to boost their Instagram followers. Morais took the brunt of the backlash, as he manipulated other players in order to stay in Mexico long enough for James to arrive.
The Bachelorette Season 19, however, might be a different ballgame. For the first time in franchise history, the show will feature two leads for the entirety of the season, and with promises that the women aren’t going to have to compete with each other for love, it’s likely that The Bachelorette had to make some major changes to the game, including filming part of the season on a cruise ship.
We don’t have long to wait now to see how Gabby Windey and Rachel Recchia fare — and to find out if anyone from their season suffers from too much pre-gaming. The Bachelorette premieres at 8 p.m. ET Monday, July 11, on ABC. Be sure to check out our 2022 TV Schedule to see what other premieres are coming soon.
