MAJOR SPOILERS ahead from The Bachelor 2020, aka Bachelor Peter Weber's Season 24, and maybe The Bachelorette 2020, aka Season 16.
Bachelor Peter Weber's final two weeks are essentially the START of his journey, but never mind. Because I'm suddenly more interested in who will be the next Bachelorette. Because ABC just revealed it will announce her this Monday, March 2, 2020 on Good Morning America. And the timing comes just after a juicy rumor about Bachelor Nation veteran Clare Crawley.
A GMA reveal means the next Bachelorette won't be one of Peter's finalists, which Reality Steve's spoilers already revealed to be Hannah Ann Sluss or Madison Prewett, since the finale doesn't air until March 9-10. That was already pretty much expected, but still. And does this mean the Bachelorette won't be Kelsey Weier, whose Bachelorette showcase comes later that night on the "Women Tell All" special? Maybe. The next Bachelorette may be someone from a past season like Tayshia Adams or Tia Booth ... or Clare Crawley?
The Clare Crawley rumor is currently just a rumor and not a spoiler. But damn! After the "Really?!" shock wore off, I'm in. Please cast Clare Crawley for The Bachelorette 2020, aka Season Sweet 16.
First, here's ABC's official tease:
Who Is Clare Crawley?
Clare, now 38, first showed up on Bachelor Juan Pablo Galavis' ill-fated Season 18, pretending to be pregnant for a Night 1 gag. She was the runner-up for that 2014 season and returned for the first two seasons of Bachelor in Paradise. She finally found love, in a roundabout way, on the spinoff The Bachelor Winter Games in 2018. That's the last time we saw her competing on a Bachelor show. She got into a relationship The Bachelor Canada's Benoit Beauséjour-Savard although they didn't last on the show. They reconnected after filming and actually had a surprise engagement on the Winter Games' tell-all reunion show. But the announced their split in April 2018.
Will Clare Be The Bachelorette 2020?
The Bachelorette 2019 Hannah Brown was reportedly the producers' first choice for I 2020 but she wanted more money to return. That's the spoiler from Reality Steve, anyway. He said ABC would probably go with someone not from Bachelor Peter's season, which would be bad news for Kelsey after the showcase we'll see this Monday, March 2 on the "Women Tell All" episode. Reality Steve said Bachelor veterans Tayshia, Tia, and Kelsey all had formal interviews for the Bachelorette job, and it could still be one of them. But there's a rumor claiming Clare already has the gig for The Bachelorette Season 16:
Sounds like that Ellen tease was off, no matter what, since the reveal is happening March 2 on GMA. True or not, DO IT. Honestly, out of all of the options, Clare is my favorite, for several reasons. Sure, on a surface level she's just another beautiful blonde from Bachelor Nation. However, she would be a breakthrough for the franchise on the age front and also just a good choice for who she is as an individual.
Clare Would Be The Oldest Bachelorette
It's not the only reason to cast her, but after the catty immaturity of the very young 20-somethings on Bachelor Peter's season, I would not be surprised if ABC really did want to age-up. There's a senior season coming, but Clare Crawley is 38. That's not exactly senior, despite the ageism in Bachelor Nation, especially when it comes to women. The Bachelor has had plenty of dudes in their mid-to-late 30s and Byron Velvick was 40 back in Season 6. Brad Womack was 38 his second time around as The Bachelor, Nick Viall and Arie Luyendyk Jr. were 36.
Age does not equal maturity, but it's about time The Bachelorette started reflecting the reality that most people are now waiting until later in life to get married and "settle down," whatever that means. Clare is probably the middle ground for longtime Bachelor Nation viewers and the younger new fans. She'd be a breath of fresh air in the sea of 24-year-olds who "want to get married" -- but mostly just want to launch entertainment careers.
Clare Has A Lot Of Bachelor Nation Experience
Speaking of Bachelor Arie, it was a left field choice when he returned too, several years after being on Bachelorette Emily Maynard's season. He was a mess in his return, but at least it ended well after the show. Clare endured everything about Bachelor Juan Pablo -- and, man, there was a lot to endure -- including how he basically slut-shamed her. She kept trying to find love on spinoffs and was sought-after during the Winter Games. Clare understands how this (cringe) "process" works and has seen every side of it. I think she's experienced and mature enough to ask the right questions and give us a season that's practical and advances the conversation from sex and Who Is There For The Wrong Reasons to something earnest and real. Here's a taste of what it might be like to have Clare as The Bachelor, trying to get men to listen to her:
Clare Has A Fun, Open, 'Vulnerable,' Relatable Personality
Clare is not dull. She has a sense of humor and she's very open about everything. Also, I put "vulnerable" in quotes because it's basically Bachelor Nation code for being able to wear your heart on your sleeve and cry. Clare can cry, she can also communicate well, and I feel like her conversations would actually be worth hearing. We might even hear "like" less often, but I won't get ahead of myself.
Whoever gets The Bachelorette 2020 job may not know herself yet, as Reality Steve reminds us:
So we'll find out the next Bachelorette, one way or the other, this Monday morning, March 2. The Bachelor 2020 continues Monday at 8 p.m. for the "Women Tell All" special and then Peter Weber has his two-night The Bachelor Season 24 finale Monday, March 9 and Tuesday, March 10 on ABC.
I know not everyone remembers Clare, but what do you think about the idea of Clare as the Bachelor? Maybe I only like her because I'm waaaaay closer to her age than these 23-year-olds Bachelor Peter is chasing after.
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