ABC
Bachelor Nation fans missing The Mansion will have to wait longer for the dating franchise to return home. The next season of The Bachelorette will follow in the footsteps of its pandemic-era predecessors, with production also based entirely at one resort to accommodate safety protocols and travel restrictions.
Reality Steve previously tweeted the next leading lady would be filming at Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge in Alberta, Canada. CBC Calgary confirmed the resort had the dates of February 23 through April 29 booked.
(UPDATE): Due to the updated quarantine restrictions in Canada laid out last week, I’ve been told “Bachelorette” will NOT be filming there next season anymore. Resorts in the US now being looked at, but they are definitely still looking at colder weather locations.
That all changed when Reality Steve posted on Twitter, “(UPDATE): Due to the updated quarantine restrictions in Canada laid out last week, I’ve been told “Bachelorette” will NOT be filming there next season anymore. Resorts in the US now being looked at, but they are definitely still looking at colder weather locations.”
With the filming location now up in the air, virtually nothing is known about the upcoming season of The Bachelorette. Though, production dates will presumably stay the same so the female-led iteration can return to its normal spot in the franchise’s schedule.
While this season of The Bachelor was filmed at the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort in Pennsylvania, season 16 of The Bachelorette took place at the La Quinta Resort & Club.
Stop reading if you do not want spoilers for season 25 of The Bachelor!
No Bachelorette Has Been Named, Though There Are Some Likely Frontrunners
With quarantine procedures and production expected to start at the end of the month, naming a new Bachelorette is imminent. Though, there is no clear frontrunner at this time.
“I would say with 99.9% certainly, the Bachelorette is going to be someone who comes from one of our previous seasons,” ABC Executive Robert Mills told Variety. He added, “Probably Matt’s, but at least someone who is familiar to Bachelor Nation.”
Reality Steve has already predicted one up-and-coming fan favorite is out of contention. He wrote on his website, “I think we can now rule out Michelle [Young] as next ‘Bachelorette’ because the crew and the lead will be there end of February. Which means the ‘Bachelorette’ announcement will no doubt come before they leave. So how can you announce Michelle as the ‘Bachelorette’ 2-3 weeks before the finale airs? Once you get to the finale and Rachael and Michelle are the final two, you’ve eliminated all your suspense.”
Noting he has yet to hear who will be the next lead, Reality Steve continued, “We just don’t know enough yet. I gotta believe Bri [Springs], Abigail [Heringer], and Katie [Thurston] are certainly contenders from this season, but I have no idea if they’ve started talking to them. Then you can never rule out someone from a past season, whoever that may be. As I hear things I’ll let you know.”
Should she not come from this season of The Bachelor, Reality Steve wrote on his website that the women are largely narrowed down to Hannah Ann Sluss, Tia Booth and Kendall Long. Most leads come from the top four of their first season, and of those women dating back through Chris Soules’ season, only a handful are single and in a personal place to likely say yes.
Production Details Are Still up in the Air for ‘Bachelor in Paradise’
After production delays on season 16 of The Bachelorette knocked Bachelor in Paradise off the 2020 lineup, Mills confirmed to Variety that they are “hell-bent on figuring out how we make Paradise work.”
He continued, “Unless something horrendous happens, I feel very confident that Paradise is coming back on this summer – how and where it’s going to be, it’s still too early to tell.”
With uncertainty about how widespread the vaccination rollout will be and whether travel will be permitted to Mexico, Mills has not confirmed the location or protocol. Though, he did note on The Viall Files that the two seasons of The Bachelor and two seasons of The Bachelorette that will have aired between the last season of Bachelor in Paradise and the next will set up a “super-sized” season.
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