Getty Images Kendall & Grocery Store Joe.
Fans of “The Bachelor” fell in love with Joe Amabile, a.k.a “Grocery Store Joe,” when he was first introduced on Becca Kufrin’s season of “The Bachelorette.” Although he was sent home on night one, he had an everlasting effect on Bachelor Nation. He was invited back to join the cast of “Bachelor in Paradise” where he fell in love with “Bachelor” contestant Kendall Long.
Joe and Kendall ultimately ended their relationship because Joe wanted to move to Chicago to be closer to his family, and, well, Kendall didn’t.
“Joe has made the decision to move back to Chicago while Kendall will be remaining in her hometown of Los Angeles. Our family and friends have always been an extremely important element to who we are as people. We can’t imagine continuing our lives without them closer, especially when thinking of starting a family of our own one day,” the couple said in a joint statement at the time of their split, according to Entertainment Tonight.
“We both respect each other’s decision and still have a great deal of love for each other. We appreciate all the love and support everyone has given us throughout our relationship,” their statement continued.
With a new season of “Bachelor in Paradise” right around the corner, many are wondering who will be given another chance at finding love — and will one of those people be Grocery Store Joe? So far, there has not been any confirmation about whether or not Joe will join the new cast of the show. However, there is one person that hopes he doesn’t. And that’s his ex, Kendall.
Here’s what you need to know:
Kendall Revealed That it ‘Would Suck’ to Watch Joe Find Love on ‘Bachelor in Paradise’
In a sit-down with Ben Higgins and Ashley Iaconetti for the “Almost Famous” podcast, Kendall revealed that she wouldn’t be thrilled to watch her ex try to find love on “Bachelor in Paradise.”
“It would be so hard. I would not want to watch him fall in love with someone else. That would suck so much,” she said on the May 3 episode of the podcast. Although Kendall says that she does want her ex-boyfriend to be happy, she added that she didn’t want that to happen “in front of [her] face.”
Kendall went on to say that she would turn down the opportunity to appear on “Paradise” with Joe because she would “just be signing up for another heartbreak.”
She also admitted that she still has a “tremendous amount of love” for Joe, even if they are no longer an item.
Could Grocery Store Joe Become the Next ‘Bachelor’ Star?
Back in January, there was some chatter about Joe becoming the next star of “The Bachelor.” The conversation got kickstarted following an episode of his podcast “Click Bait,” which he co-hosts with Tayshia Adams and Natasha Parker.
“I too am looking forward to being engaged this year, I think it’s gonna happen for me,” he joked. He was asked if he was being at all serious, to which he replied “You know, I’m going to put it out there in the world. I’m sick of being single so you never know, gonna throw it out there, it could happen.”
Joe went on to say that he thinks he would make a “very, very entertaining ‘Bachelor.'” Interestingly, his podcast co-stars agreed with him, saying that he’d be a “funny” yet “awkward” lead, both convinced that his season would “actually end in a real-life engagement.”
The next “Bachelorette” star has already been chosen; Michelle Young will hand out roses after Katie Thurston, but there hasn’t been any word on who will be cast as the next “Bachelor.”
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