Spinoffs aren't too hard to find on television recently, and it seems like there's always talk of a new spinoff or two that could be destined for primetime. One series that not many people might have expected to get yet another spinoff is The Bachelor, but it's getting one, and the next offshoot series is going to focus on two past contestants instead of a crew of new folks looking for love. Freeform -- formerly known as ABC Family -- has picked up Ben and Lauren: Happily Ever After, which will focus on the post-Bachelor lives of Ben Higgins and Lauren Bushnell.
Ben and Lauren: Happily Ever After, which will likely air in October, is set to follow the adorable duo in their more domestic adventures now that they've left the fantastical setting of The Bachelor. They have a wedding to plan and a new life to build together. Lauren Bushnell moved to Denver to live with Ben Higgins after the end of Season 20. Although their first date in Denver ran into some unexpected complications, the lovebirds must be doing better than ever together.
In addition to planning their wedding, Ben Higgins will consider involvement in politics while Lauren Bushnell will attempt to re-establish her identity in the aftermath of The Bachelor. I'm not sure what could happen with Higgins getting political. I admit that I'm curious about how Bushnell will try to move past her experience on The Bachelor. She may have been the winner, but she still had to compete with more than twenty other beautiful young women to try to win over a stranger. It could be interesting to see how she reacts to cameras following her around in the Happily Ever After after her time on The Bachelor.
Higgins was the titular bachelor of Season 20 of The Bachelor, and his and Bushnell's romance felt surprisingly genuine considering that it unfolded in front of cameras on an ABC reality show. Audiences evidently responded well enough to Higgins and Bushnell that they're getting a spinoff.
Ben Higgins and Lauren Bushnell obviously haven't been traumatized by the sensationalism around the start of their relationship if they've signed on to have their lives together once again broadcast to the public. Although Freeform doesn't attract nearly the same ratings as ABC, the numbers consistently drawn by The Bachelor may mean that Happily Ever After will be a big winner for Freeform. Season 20 was the top show on Monday nights in the key 18 -- 34 demographic for adults and women, and the series ranks among the list of TV's Top 5 broadcast shows with 18 -- 34 adults.
With the rather optimistic name Happily Ever After, the new show should still produce some degree of drama from Ben Higgins and Lauren Bushnell. For a reminder of some of the drama experienced by the duo during their time on The Bachelor, check out our ranking of the 10 craziest moments of Season 20.
