Note: This story contains spoilers from “The Golden Bachelorette” premiere.
As “The Golden Bachelorette” Joan Vassos takes the helm of the ABC reality dating franchise, the leading lady was introduced to 24 senior men in Wednesday’s series premiere, all of whom prepared a special entrance to introduce themselves in true “Bachelor” fashion.
“There [were] a couple ways that men showed that they knew who I was,” Vassos told TheWrap. “Some of them had poems that they’d written, and that was from ‘The Golden Bachelor’ episode … from the talent competition. People really took time to do something that they thought would show me that they really cared.”
Vassos pointed to David, a rancher from Austin, Texas, who brought a horse for his entrance that ended up running away, as a memorable moment from the night, as well as Gregg, who had set up a beach scene complete with Hawaiian shirts and fruity frozen cocktails for them to get to know each other better.
“He made a [real] effort to show that he knew what I liked and that he had done some research into me,” Vassos said, noting that she might’ve mentioned loving the beach in an interview or on Instagram. “I love that. That was really, really cute.”
Despite having enjoyable interactions with many of her suitors, Vassos ultimately handed her first impression rose to Keith, a 62-year-old from San Jose, California.
Keith rode in on a station wagon, which Vassos said reminded her of her childhood and made her think the pair might’ve had a similar upbringing. “We would hop in the station wagon and then go on vacations with the luggage attached to the roof,” she recalled. “I like that nostalgia — it made me feel good.”
“I loved his entrance, but that really wasn’t the reason I chose him,” Vassos said, pointing to the ease of their conversation. “When we were getting the signal like, ‘Hey, it’s time to move on,’ he was like, ‘Let’s just get out of here — let’s grab a bottle of wine and some cheese and go to sit on the blanket on the beach.’ I was like, ‘God, that’s exactly what I feel like doing.’ “
That comfort continued when the duo had another conversation inside the “Bachelor” mansion. “It just flowed and he just made me feel safe,” Vassos said. “He was like this big teddy bear … He was the first person I felt really very comfortable with that night.”
Going into Night 1, Vassos admitted she wasn’t sure how she would connect with the men or what emotional level they would be at. But family ended up being a huge part of the conversations she had with her suitors, with many of the men applauding her commitment to her family as shown by her early exit from “The Golden Bachelor.”
“That seemed to be a really natural one for all of us to start with, and it kind of just naturally unfolded,” Vassos said. “We started talking about our families [and] … you’re gonna hear a lot more backstories [this season].”
In a teaser for the rest of the season at the end of the episode, former “Golden Bachelor” Gerry Turner stops by and asks the leading lady some “telling questions,” according to Vassos.
“Gerry came by and we had some really good conversations,” Vassos said. “He’s the one that wrote this book, and he asked me some really telling questions, and helped me figure things out. That’s going to be a really good episode to see him come back, and you get to see another side of him.”
“The Golden Bachelorette” premieres Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC, with new episodes streaming the next day on Hulu.
