ABC Clare Crawley and Chris Harrison during the premiere of The Bachelorette.
SPOILERS: Stop reading if you do not want to know spoilers for season 16 of The Bachelorette. Bachelor Nation has been abuzz awaiting the moment when Chris Harrison tells Clare Crawley, “Congratulations, you’ve just blown up The Bachelorette.” Now, after months of speculation, it is expected to play out this week.
Rumors first started swirling over the summer, with Reality Steve reporting Crawley quit the show to pursue a relationship with frontrunner Dale Moss. After first meeting Moss as he exited the limo, Crawley said “I definitely feel like I just met my husband.” This instant connection led many viewers to ask if Crawley and Moss have been in communication, a point which Crawley has denied. Based on an exclusive sneak peek with E!, those same concerns are about to hit Crawley’s suitors.
In the clip, contestant Kenny Braasch asks Crawley, “Were you talking to Dale before the show started?” Harrison then asks, “Did you lie to all of Bachelor Nation?” The question appears to be directed at Crawley, though the answer is not instantly provided.
Despite not seeing her response, she has previously admitted to looking up the announced suitors during the production delay. When promoting The Bachelorette on Jimmy Kimmel Live! before the season’s premiere, Crawley said, “He was one of the guys that was on, cast for earlier in the season when it was supposed to air earlier and being able to look him up, there were just a lot of good things that aligned with what I’m looking for that he kind of embodied.”
During what appears to be a conversation with the men in the promo, Crawley states, “I will never apologize for love.” This declaration comes after a week where the men were growing weary of Crawley’s relationship with Moss. Viewers saw Moss dominate a group date and receive the rose. During another date centered on a comedy roast, where Moss and the other men not on the date served as the audience, the contestants focused their energy on him. At the cocktail party, Crawley asked each man about the New York-based model before not giving the rose to anyone and calling Moss “my fiancé.” This is the moment ABC Executive Rob Mills told former Bachelor Nick Viall, host of The Viall Files, they realized they would need to bring someone else in as Bachelorette.
After she seemingly exits, viewers see Blake Moynes ask, “Clare’s gone, what just happened?” Braasch asks, “Do we get a new Bachelorette?”
Tayshia Adams Is the New ‘Bachelorette’
As has been seemingly confirmed, Adams is expected to take over as the lead of The Bachelorette during this upcoming Thursday’s episode. While the timeline of her coming on board is murky, amid a series of liked tweets by Crawley implying she was pushed out, Adams will pick through the remaining men. Four additional men, Spencer Robertson, Montel Hill, Peter Giannikopoulos and Noah Erb, join the cast.
Robertson is expected to receive the first impression rose, but will not make it to the top four. Those slots go to Ben Smith, Zac Clark, Brendan Morais and Ivan Hall. This journey may be for naught if Reality Steve’s assertion Crawley and Moss are the only love story this season is true.
Next Week’s Episode Will Air on Thursday
Fans have had to adjust to watching The Bachelorette on Tuesday after the season was delayed and could no longer air during its customary Monday timeslot. Even so, the show is on the move again, but for one night only.
With the election on Tuesday, the female-led iteration of the reality series will air on Thursday at 8/7c. The schedule will revert to Tuesday after the election.
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