Is Jesse Palmer out as the host of The Golden Bachelorette? Just as Jenn Tran’s journey to find love on The Bachelorette prepares to hit the 2024 TV schedule on July 8, there’s a big question mark surrounding the dating show’s senior-centered spinoff. Thanks to a cryptic social media post from Bachelor Nation alum Kaitlyn Bristowe, fans are wondering if Palmer has already been replaced ahead of Joan Vassos’ season, and I have to admit, the evidence is pretty compelling.
Kaitlyn Bristowe — who was a contestant on The Bachelor before starring in her own season of The Bachelorette in 2015 — has apparently been manifesting a career opportunity for herself, and she took to Instagram to announce to fans that big news is forthcoming. She captioned a group of photos:
Remember when I asked you guys to put it out into the universe that I’d get the thing I auditioned for? I got it. Thank you.
Because her pics featured Dancing with the Stars pro Sasha Farber and host Julianne Hough, many fans wondered if the new job might be related to that ABC reality competition, which she won in 2020 with partner Artem Chigvintsev. However, Kaitlyn Bristowe shut that down in the comments, telling fans, “haha I wish!!!! But no,” and also brushing off the idea that she was replacing either Hough or Alfonso Ribeiro by saying DWTS already has “the dream team hosting!!”
Other fans picked up on a more subtle hint that pointed to a different show. Alongside Kaitlyn Bristowe's photos with the DWTS crew, the former Bachelorette was shown wearing a red dress with flared sleeves — the same outfit The Sun pictured her wearing on the set of The Golden Bachelorette:
It was previously assumed that Kaitlyn Bristowe merely made an appearance on Joan Vassos’ season — as she did with Gerry Turner on The Golden Bachelor — but come to think of it, I didn’t see Jesse Palmer in The Sun’s pics from that group date. Is Bristowe actually playing a much larger role in the season than we originally thought?
It actually would make a lot of sense. The Golden Bachelorette started filming immediately after Jenn Tran’s season of The Bachelorette wrapped, which would mean that Jesse Palmer’s been a pretty busy guy this summer if he’s hosting both shows. It’s not the craziest of conspiracy theories to think that he might have not wanted to be away from his family for that long, given the fact that his wife Emely just gave birth to their daughter in January. Also, it’s not like the college sports analyst’s schedule will calm down any when football season kicks off.
If ABC did want or need to find someone to step in for Jesse Palmer, Kaitlyn Bristowe would be an obvious choice. Not only would it be nice for Joan Vassos to have someone who’s been in that position to help her through her journey, Bristowe has already done the job, co-hosting two seasons of The Bachelorette with Tayshia Adams after Chris Harrison was removed from the franchise.
Whatever’s happening with Kaitlyn Bristowe, we’ll find out soon enough what this new business venture is, and we don’t have that long to wait until The Golden Bachelorette premieres in the fall. In the meantime, though, catch the beginning of Jenn Tran’s journey when The Bachelorette premieres at 8 p.m. ET Monday, July 8, on ABC. Episodes will be available to stream the next day with a Hulu subscription.
