[read in Jesse Palmer voice] EVERYTHING. IS. ABOUT. TO. CHANGE.
Bachelor Nation appears shooketh by the announcement of Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Taylor Frankie Paul as the next Bachelorette. This seems like something worth musing about.
First, I am unfamiliar with Ms. Paul’s oeuvre, having watched only a few minutes of Secret Lives out of curiosity in a hotel room. However, the buzz surrounding this selection indicates that it is both a dramatic and controversial decision. And with plunging ratings across The Bachelor franchise, the move has a whiff of desperation.
The implications for The Bachelor going forward are massive. In making Taylor the next Bachelorette, the Suits at ABC (sABCs) broke the franchise’s longtime practice of casting contestants from previous seasons. This is more than a shiny new toy to play around with. It is a radical culture shift. Bachelor Nation had grown accustomed to a Bachelorette being a loveable “loser” from The Bachelor. The Bachelorette would enter the season with emotional equity among the fans. Ms. Paul will come with equity (or baggage) only from viewers of Secret Lives.
Moreover, Ms. Paul’s selection breaks every stereotype of who we expect the Bachelorette to be. The mythology of The Bachelorette is of an unknown, desirable ingénue who will not only find love but also become a pop culture phenomenon and an influencer with a large social media following. Taylor Frankie Paul is already the star of a reality show and a major influencer with a large social media following. And far from being an ingénue, Ms. Paul is a divorced mother of three children by two baby daddies, with a history of sex scandals and toxic relationships, and an arrest on charges of domestic violence for which she was not convicted.
This is not your typical Bachelorette, to say the least. Talk about everything is about to change. This feels like a crucial moment of decision for a 23-year-old franchise in decline. It’s either stay the course with minor tweaks and continue to fade further into irrelevance and eventual cancellation, or make a bold, sink-or-swim move. After this recent season of Paradise that saw significant changes, the sABCs are signaling that nothing is off the table in terms of refreshing The Bachelor franchise.
How do I feel about it? I’m very high on the personality trait of Openness from the Big Five Model, which means that I am intellectually curious and tend to be very receptive to new ideas, especially when they challenge existing norms. That will be the case here. I’m neither for nor against the decision. I’m looking forward to seeing how it pans out. What I do expect is that the season will have a very different feel. Given Taylor’s experience with reality TV, I expect her to drive the production choices as much as the Evil Genius Producers (EGPs).
Random thought: Secret Lives of Mormon Wives first aired in September 2024. Litia Garr was a Mormon who made it to hometowns in Grant’s season of The Bachelor that began in January 2025. After the success of Secret Lives, was Litia a test run for a Mormon Bachelorette lead? Hmmmmmm . . . .
Ray's Musings 
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