ABC/Craig Sjodin
Generally, The Bachelorette 2018 airs on Monday nights, from 8 – 10 p.m. ET/PT and 7 – 9 p.m. CT, on the ABC network. Tonight, though, President Donald Trump will be making the Supreme Court announcement right in the middle of the regular programming. According to Fast Company, Trump is believed to be choosing between four federal appeals court judges and they are Brett Kavanaugh, Raymond Kethledge, Amy Coney Barrett, and Thomas Hardiman. All major networks will air the announcement live at 9 p.m. ET, so what does that mean for The Bachelorette tonight?
The ABC network will pause The Bachelorette and show tonight’s episode 7 of the season in its entirety. It will resume the showing immediately following Trump’s announcement. Variety has reported that the announcement is set to run through 9:13 p.m. ET, but some networks are allowing for 20 – 30 minutes in their schedule for the interruption.
The Bachelorette will run late, which means a late start for additional programming like The Proposal and Jimmy Kimmel Live on the east coast. West coast time zones will carry out their normal TV schedule.
Earlier today, the host of The Bachelorette, Chris Harrison, tweeted about tonight’s interrupted schedule, explaining, “Here’s my PSA for #BachelorNation @abcnews will be cutting in at 9/8 ET/CT tonight for SCOTUS announcement. #TheBachelorette will be “paused” and seen in its entirety. Now go have a great day and I’ll see you tonight!” He also tweeted that, “To be safe you should extend your recordings of #TheBachelorette tonight by 30 minutes.” So, be sure to adjust your DVR, to give enough time for the SCOTUS Pick.
Tonight airs episode 7 of The Bachelorette and only four men will move forward to next week’s show. The plot description for tonight’s episode reads, “Becca and six bachelors take a trip to the Bahamas; Colton, Garrett and Blake get one-on-one dates with Becca; Becca joins the group for a game of beach volleyball; the Baha Men perform.” Next week’s episode will showcase the final 4 on their hometown dates, which means that two men are eliminated on tonight’s episode.
Prior to tonight’s episode airing, star Becca Kufrin told People that, “Toasting with the final six men remaining was surreal, but I felt so elated. I knew that in the next week I would be making decisions that would truly would shape the future of this journey and my entire life … The men and I travel to the Bahamas! Things really heat up with unexpected swing dancing, an ‘I love you’ that ends in tears, and a secret that could change everything. Give me that piña colada and some sunshine as I explore my relationships and make some major decisions before meeting my future in-laws. It’s a romantic getaway you won’t want to miss!”
Following The Bachelorette tonight is episode 4 of The Proposal. The Xfinity plot description of tonight’s show reads, “Ten men vie for the heart of a woman who is an actress, entrepreneur, humanitarian and former first lady of an island.” And, after tonight’s east coast news, Jimmy Kimmel Live will air with guests Terry Crews, Bobby Cannavale and Todd Rundgren’s Utopia.
