The Bachelorette season 21 is coming soon and with Jenn Tran as the lead, it’s meant to be a historic season for the franchise, but I’m worried about what’s to come after seeing the promotional material. While Jenn is making history as the first Asian-American Bachelorette, her time as the lead wasn’t something that Bachelor Nation was expecting. After appearing on The Bachelor season 28 with Joey Graziadei, Jenn was one of the women of the season who came out with a popular perception from the audience. While Bachelor Nation praised Jenn, hearing her named The Bachelorette was a shock.
Throughout the press cycle leading up to Jenn becoming The Bachelorette, several names were being thrown around about who could become the potential lead. While Jenn was in the running, many didn’t take her candidacy seriously with the other Bachelor women in the mix. After learning she would be the lead, Bachelor Nation got excited to see Jenn’s love story unfold, but there has been a mixed reception to the promotional material that’s started coming out regarding her season. With ABC seemingly promoting the season oddly, I’m concerned about what’s to come for Jenn’s story on The Bachelorette season 21.
Jenn Was Allegedly A Last-Minute Bachelorette Selection
After Joey’s season of The Bachelor was spoiled online and the editing appeared to be leaning in the direction of Kelsey Anderson being his final choice, Bachelor Nation began buzzing about who would be the next Bachelorette. Jenn was in the running according to Bachelor Nation, but many felt that it would either be Joey’s runner-up, Daisy Kent, or the fan-favorite of the season, Maria Georgas. Maria, who took on more of a villain role earlier in the season, had become one of the more beloved women in the cast, and many felt it was crucial she became TheBachelorette.
After Jenn was shockingly named to be the next Bachelorette on The Bachelor: After The Final Rose, viewers were floored by the decision. Many were shocked that the leading role hadn’t gone to Maria, and others were convinced that Jenn had been a last-minute switch-up for the production team. On the Call Her Daddy podcast, Maria shared that she’d been slated to be the next Bachelorette for months, but ultimately decided it wasn’t the right choice for her in the days leading up to the announcement. While this hasn’t been confirmed, if it’s true, Jenn was a last-minute lead choice.
Although Bachelor Nation has been supportive of Jenn being named the next Bachelorette, the promotional material that came out for her season has left a sour taste in viewers' mouths. I was shocked to see the promo material that came out surrounding Jenn’s season, especially knowing that she’ll be the first-ever Asian-American lead for the series. Leading up to such a historic season for the series, the advertising for Jenn’s season has me genuinely confused. The initial ads feature Jenn inside an arcade-style crane machine, where she’s meant to be playing the game of love and taking back the power.
While the messaging of the advertisements is clear, showing off the fact that Jenn has gone from the contestant on The Bachelor to the lead on The Bachelorette, there’s a lack of personal touch to them that makes Jenn feel distant. Jenn, who was funny and charming throughout her time on The Bachelor, is just shown to be a powerful decision-maker as The Bachelorette. I’m not sure why the choice was to take her personality and background out of the ads, but Jenn’s ability to relate to the audience is lacking completely in the new, strange arcade-style Bachelorette promotional material.
Is There Less Effort Than Usual Going Into Jenn's Season?
If the weird arcade-style promos weren’t weird enough, the announcement of Jenn’s cast of guys was even stranger. In a video where the guys are posed on a white background, the cast scrolls from right to left as the guys do some cringe dance moves or wave hello to the camera. While there’s no information about who the guys are, their introduction has been strange for Bachelor Nation. It has me wondering if there’s a reason for the odd promotional material, and why there appears to be so little effort going into Jenn’s season ahead of its July premiere date.
I don’t know if it’s intentional that there seems to be so little going into the lead-up to Jenn’s season, or if it just feels like it because of the barrage of promo that led up to The Bachelorette season 20 with Charity Lawson, or even Joey’s season of The Bachelor. Whether it’s intentional or not, it’s odd to me that the network doesn’t seem to be putting effort into a season that’s going to make history for The Bachelorette. Even with Bachelor Nation excited to see Jenn take the lead on The Bachelorette, I think it could be lackluster.
