‘The Bachelorette’ Exec Is Reportedly Eyeing A New Format To Reflect The World Of Today Amid Season 16 Delay

Published on April 15, 2020.

One way or another, The Bachelorette will find its way on to the air!

During an appearance on the Chicks in the Office podcast, ABC exec Robert Mills discussed what exactly is going on with Clare Crawley’s upcoming season of The Bachelorette after production for the series was halted.

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In early March, Crawley was announced as the new star of the ABC reality dating series spinoff. Shortly after, ABC announced the contestants for season 16 of The Bachelorette, which was set to debut in May, but was unfortunately paused due to the ongoing public health and safety situation. With the show being on hold, longtime franchise host Chris Harrison said ABC was going to review the cast and search for men closer in age to the 39-year-old leading star due to commitments being changed for those who were previously cast.

“We talk about it every day. Obviously, it’s super important,” Mills said, referring to The Bachelorette. “Look, I’ll be honest: We will do it as soon as its safe…We want to get it on the first minute we possibly can.”

The exec added that there have been several discussions, and when they will test contestants. Once everyone’s health has been confirmed and cleared, the producers and executives must decide if they will travel or not. “A lot of that just changes daily. We will figure out how to get some version that reflects the world we’re in as quickly as possible,” Mills said.

“We definitely want to get Bachelorette in the can because we announced Clare, everyone’s excited for it, there’s all these plans for it, but that might take longer to logistically figure out,” Mill said. Additionally, ABC wants to keep The Bachelorette on schedule for January 2021.

“It will be tough, but we will definitely figure it out because we all need this—badly,” the exec admitted.

Mills went on to confirm casting is still happening for The Bachelorette season 16. The initial lineup of men was quickly cast because Crawley was the last person the network met with.

“We met with a lot of girls from [Peter Weber’s] season…We had talked to Tia [Booth], we talked to some of [Colton Underwood’s] girls…Clare was literally the last person we met with,” Mills said. “We did not talk to Hannah Ann [Sluss]…I don’t know that she was ready to jump into anything.”

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