“The Bachelorette” will not air in the spring or summer of 2025, with the network announcing a pause for the “Bachelor” spinoff series. However, the show hasn’t been canceled and will likely return to ABC in late 2025 or in 2026.
On the February 10 episode of the “Playing the Field” podcast, “Bachelor” host Jesse Palmer spoke out about the show, and confirmed that it’s simply skipping a cycle.
“I can’t get too far in depth with a lot of the creative decisions that went into that. I know it’s not unprecedented for The Bachelorette not to air in the summer,” Palmer said.
“Listen, I’m obviously a little bit bummed myself just because I always love my interactions on that show with the lead. I love getting to meet a whole brand new cast, and I love being there to help guide people towards, hopefully, finding everlasting love on the show. I think this, the good news is, I know it’s not going away,” he added.
Fans Have Their Own Ideas About Why ABC Pulled the Next Cycle of ‘The Bachelorette’
News of the pause sparked debate from “Bachelorette” fans on Reddit. Many had their own ideas about what might have happened.
“I really don’t think that ratings had anything to do with it. I think the production team just wants extra time to make sure that their background checks are way better than last year,” one person wrote.
“The ratings for Jenn Tran’s season were never released, so I would guess they were very low. ABC belongs to a for-profit company, and ratings matter for the revenue. If ABC can generate higher ratings with an alternate program, that’s what they will logically do. They probably have alternatives lined up waiting for the green light for all time slots,” someone else said.
“This entire show has been a torpedo straight down ever since Matt James. How could ABC botch such an asset is beyond me. Low key I think they just listened to online criticism too much and messed with the formula,” a third comment read.
Former “Bachelorette” Lead Rachel Recchia Heard ABC Already Had a Lead
On the February 11 episode of the “Almost Famous” podcast, former lead star Rachel Recchia said that a lead for the new season of “The Bachelorette” had already been selected. But the brakes are on.
“I was shocked because I heard they picked the lead,” Recchia said. “I heard the lead was decided and it made sense to me who they picked. Again, rumors,” she continued, adding, “I saw this on Instagram. Normally, I feel like we hear stuff on the inside. I didn’t hear anything [about the pause].”
If ABC followed its typical formula, the new lead would be from Grant Ellis’ season of “The Bachelor.” Usually, ABC offers the gig to the runner up of the previous season — or someone super popular amongst fans. However, sometimes producers go rogue, but, for the most part, fans can pretty much guess who the next person handing out roses will be.
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Is ‘The Bachelorette’ Canceled? Fans Receive Promising News