After Daisy Kent denied the opportunity to hand out roses, Jenn Tran was named the next Bachelorette.
Jesse Palmer brought out Bachelor season 28 runner-up Daisy during the After the Final Rose portion of Joey Graziadei‘s finale on Monday, March 25, to ask if she was ready to be the next lead.
“My life, the last year, has been crazy. I mean, yesterday, it’s weird, it was the one year of me getting my cochlear implant, which completely changed my life,” Daisy, who lost her hearing amid a battle with Lyme disease, said. “Also, I went through this and as great of an experience it was, it was also really, really hard. I’m healthy and I’m happy. I haven’t had those two things in a really long time. And so right now, I know it’s a time for me to focus on the things I love and the people I love. And so right now, no, I’m not ready. And that’s OK. And I’m really proud of myself for realizing that.”
After walking away from Joey because she knew he was in love with Kelsey Anderson, Daisy delivered a line that pretty much guaranteed her the job, telling ABC cameras: “If I can love the wrong person so much, imagine how much I can love the right person.” Daisy’s loss proved to be Jenn’s gain.
Jenn, who was sent home by Joey ahead of the hometown dates, makes history as the first Asian Bachelorette.
Daisy Kent Disney/Richard Middlesworth
For many fans, this is a plot twist as it had been seemingly been a toss up between Daisy and fan favorite Maria Georgas for the next lead throughout the season.
“I was trying to talk to the producers. People are, obviously, really gravitating toward Daisy and Maria, but [they are] totally different choices. Maria would be definitely interesting as a Bachelorette. I think she would be really awesome and entertaining, but also a firecracker and not the typical [lead], which I think is great. I don’t feel like I fully fit the typical Bachelorette at the time,” former Bachelorette Hannah Brown told Us earlier this month. “But then Daisy, I feel, is so sweet and just kind, and I think she has a really cool story of adversity and being able to show up as her authentic self and what she’s going through.”
Joey, who got engaged to Kelsey on the finale, told Entertainment Weekly earlier this month that he thought Maria or his second runner-up, Rachel Nance, were good options.
While some roses stand the test of time, others wilt before the Neil Lane engagement ring can be resized. The Bachelor premiered on ABC in March 2002 with Alex Michel dubbed the world’s most eligible Bachelor. More than 20 women competed for his heart and one of the most successful reality TV franchises was born. […]
“Of the women that were present, definitely Rachel and Maria. Those two, they have a lot to offer. They opened up a lot to me,” Joey told the outlet after the Women Tell All taping. “What I remember from my experience [on The Bachelorette] is that I felt like I had a story that was unfinished. I gave a lot to my time with Charity [Lawson], and when the opportunity came around, it was exciting to know that I would get a chance to do it again and write my own story. Both of those women deserve that.”
Maria Disney/Richard Middlesworth
Maria was in awe of the support at the time..
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“I mean, it is crazy to think that I was even considered and people want to see me in that position. I’ve never once thought about it, like, to even think I would get the chance,” Maria told Us Weekly and other reporters after the WTA taping. “That would be a crazy experience. I mean, I would be stupid to say no. But yeah, I mean, even being told that I should — I don’t know. I don’t know! It is a lot. But I’m very appreciative of people wanting to see me and see more of me. It’s been very nice to hear.”
The Bachelorette season 21 will air on ABC later this year.