Joe Amabile and Serena Pitt took a big step in their relationship on the Bachelor in Paradise Season 7 finale, as they were one of three couples to leave engaged. Their love story was a joy to watch unfold, as Grocery Store Joe found love in Paradise for a second time, while simultaneously getting closure with ex-girlfriend Kendall Long, who he met durinng Season 5. The journey ended in a marriage proposal for Amabile and Pitt and would have been picture perfect if not for an interruption from Long.
The three beachgoers faced an awkward scenario for much of the season, where Kendall Long was forced to watch Joe Amabile and Serena Pitt fall in love in front of her eyes. Long tried to get closure on the relationship, but it never seemed like she really got there, leading to her early exit from Paradise. Long’s appearance in the finale was a surprise — and not a welcome one — as Grocery Store Joe was waiting to propose to Pitt. Amabile spoke on the Bachelor Happy Hour podcast about the situation, revealing what he really thought when he saw his ex-girlfriend:
Her coming down at the end, I just was like, 'Okay, at this point I don’t really care what you have to say. In the nicest way possible, this is just not the time anymore.'
Joe Amabile — and his new fiancée as well — handled the interruption with more class than should be expected Especially considering that even though Kendall Long claimed she only wanted to say she was happy for Amabile and Serena Pitt, her reminiscing and saying she’d always love him told a different story.
Bachelor in Paradise bartender Wells Adams weighed in on the situation as well, providing behind-the-scenes details on his own podcast, Your Favorite Thing. Joe Amabile thought the situation was “ridiculous” and after Kendall Long left, Amabile refused to let his emotions go there, Adams said:
BTS they didn’t show is that when that happened, I was down there, then I went and had a talk with Joe, and [was] like, ‘How ya doing?’ Problem is Joe, I could never rattle Joe because he was just, ‘Wells, this is ridiculous. I can’t believe she came down here. What am I gonna do now? I just gotta laugh it off.’ [I said], ‘Joe, you can be emotional here. It’s okay.’ And he just wouldn’t. He was just like, ‘This is so ridiculous.’
The Bachelor franchise's producers are often criticized for the situations they manufacture for the sake of added drama, and Your Favorite Thing co-host Brandi Cyrus suggested they put Kendall Long up to the task of ruining Joe Amabile and Serena Pitt’s special moment. But Wells Adams wasn’t buying it, calling on his own experience with the show and its producers:
When I was on the show, I got pitched a lot ideas that I said, ‘No thank you, I will not be doing that,’ and they said, ‘Okay, bye.’ Like, you can say no to them.
Kendall Long shouldn’t have been there, plain and simple, and it was good to see Joe Amabile and Serena Pitt get their happy Paradise ending. We won’t have to wait long to see if Michelle Young will get her own happy ending, as The Bachelorette Season 18 premieres at 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday, October 19 on ABC. Be sure to check out our 2021 fall TV Schedule for more upcoming premieres.
