Spoilers on the Bachelor in Paradise 2019 reunion.
Was The Bachelorette and Bachelor in Paradise 2019 alum Mike Johnson ever seriously considered as a candidate to be the next Bachelor? If so, it sounds like it's news to him. He said he was not approached for any conversations about The Bachelor 2020 gig. Why the crickets, when fans have been calling his name for months?
The Bachelor 2020 will be announced at the Bachelor in Paradise Season 6 reunion, which airs Tuesday, September 17. Spoilers have already come out that it's Peter Weber of Bachelorette Hannah Brown's season. Pilot Pete will start filming his journey as the Bachelor that week and continue through November before The Bachelor Season 24 premieres in January 2020.
Was it ever going to be anyone else but pilot Pete, once Tyler Cameron started dating Gigi Hadid? Mike was an early favorite for the gig during Hannah's season. Most of the responses to (deeply problematic) Bachelor boss Mike Fleiss' tweet from July 1 point to wanting Mike as the next Bachelor:
Mike also got a great showing at The Bachelorette's "Men Tell All." However, Peter was the one who had his own family members in the live audience at the "After the Final Rose" special, where they were creepily thrilled to hear about their son's windmill sex exploits.
That early parental addition way back on The Bachelorette's "After the Final Rose" may have been a big hint to Peter as the next Bachelor, even though Chris Harrison said they were going to wait until after Bachelor in Paradise to announce the next Bachelor to see how people felt.
Well, if they watched Bachelor in Paradise they'd see how much people loved Derek Peth. They'd also see the outpouring for Mike Johnson, whose appearance on BiP felt like a Bachelor audition, with Mike not really finding a strong connection with anyone, perhaps saving himself for the full journey he may have hoped was ahead.
But Mike Johnson recently told ET, in an August 19 post, that he had not been approached to talk to anyone official about being the Bachelor. And that's long after Bachelor in Paradise taped, so The Powers That Be would know he didn't leave the show in a relationship.
Instead, Mike Johnson told ET he figured Peter Weber would end up The Bachelor:
I think the Bachelor would be Peter. Based on -- history repeats itself. I think Peter looks the part... when he gets a 5 o'clock shadow, he looks good too. I think that Peter's family is terrific. I've hung out with his brother, he's awesome. His mom, you know, he's got a little Spanish flair. I think that Peter and his family are just great. If I were to choose a Bachelor, it would be Peter. ... I think Peter would be a good Bachelor. He'd be a safe Bachelor, meaning that he won't do anything crazy obnoxious. I think it'd be a good, safe, clean season if he were the Bachelor.
So Mike is a fan of Peter, but also sees him as a "safe" choice like so many others from past seasons.
Speaking of what they've done before, spoiler guru Reality Steve has seen some of the Bachelor 2020 contestants ahead and had this to say:
Putting together the bios for Peter’s women and geez, the ratio of 5 foot somethin, size 0 blondes to anyone else is like a gazillion-to-1. Ok, maybe I’m exaggerating. But not by much. They pretty much look like you would expect them to. Definitely a great looking cast though.
Typical. So if you were rooting for size 0 blondes, congrats.
It can't have helped that some Bachelor Nation folks said they don't think Mike Johnson is ready to be the next Bachelor. Here's what Bachelor in Paradise bartender (and Team Derek cheerleader) Wells Adams told ET:
For Mike, I don't really know. I think he would be a great Bachelor. He's got a million-watt smile, he's tall as a house. And he's a veteran. Nothing but mad respect for him. [But] I think what people fail to grasp is you have to build a show around that person, and I don't know if he's ready for it, just in terms of the spotlight being on him that much. And the only reason I say that is because when you watch back, he's just not on the show a lot.
It's true that he's not on the show a lot, but that's not his fault. That's the producers not showing him on TV, even though fans have said they want to see him. This Mike and Sydney scene was deleted from Bachelor in Paradise, presumably so we could see more of John Paul Jones snorting from his nose, Blake sulking, Caelynn crying, or Clay getting conflicted about his feelings.
Why didn't they air more scenes from Mike, beyond showing him as a great listener and friend to lean on for others in Paradise? Did they think he was too boring? Here's more from Wells:
When you hear the producers are leaning toward one or the other, they'd be a good 'lead' or whatever, I think that what they're saying is you have to remember, yes, everyone deserves love and it would be so great if everyone could do it on this nationally televised show, but who is going to be able to, like, handle [it] all. There's a lot of pressures that go on around it, and I wonder if they're like, 'He's great, but he's not ready for that quite yet.
But why wouldn't Mike be ready? He was cool as a cucumber while Bachelorette Hannah sobbed while she dumped him. Plus, he's a veteran. I kinda think he could handle The Bachelor.
Mike Johnson's lack of demonstrative emotion was counted as a negative by another Bachelor in Paradise star. We just watched Chris Randone get married to Krystal Nielson, and he told ET Mike "failed in this process" to show his vulnerable side:
There was a key moment in Paradise that just took place, where Mike didn't show that next level what it took as far as the empathy or the emotional side to be vulnerable [as a lead]. ... Last year, we saw Colton [Underwood], when Becca [Kufrin] came. What happened with Colton? He broke down crying. He was just heartbroken, and that gave us the side of Colton we never really saw. Mike has never given us that, and I think that's where Mike failed in this process, if he doesn't become the Bachelor, of not showing us that emotional, deep side that was hard for him to be vulnerable. That would allow us to know he can hit every angle of emotions when it comes to being the Bachelor.
He needed to break down and cry like Colton Underwood to show he should be The Bachelor? They're waiting for tears, like it's part of a resume? So, Peter did a sufficient amount of crying and showing emotion -- but also suggested he's ready for the "pressures" of the job? Or something? Come on. Maybe they just picked Pete because Colton wants him off the market.
An unnamed source talked to E! before Reality Steve even revealed Peter was the official Bachelor choice. This source said Peter was The Powers That Be's pick since Hannah's season ended and Tyler started dating supermodel Gigi Hadid:
Pete was always the first pick but producers wanted to see how Paradise went with Mike. They love him but aren't sure if he is ready to carry a whole show.
Why was Peter the first pick when fans went out of their way to say they wanted Mike? Pete even managed to dodge a mini controversy when his ex-girlfriend came out to say he dumped her right before Christmas, out of the blue, ghosted her, and then showed up on The Bachelorette. But Peter having sex four times with Hannah in a windmill (and then being dumped RIGHT after that, let's not forget) apparently sold his story enough.
Peter Weber will be announced as the new Bachelor on the Bachelor in Paradise reunion special on Tuesday, September 17. Expect A LOT of windmill jokes -- plus more pilot references, like we had with Jake Pavelka. Because that worked out so well the last time.
