Love is in the air — at least it is on the upcoming season of The Bachelor. After an interview with Entertainment Weekly, host Chris Harrison spilled the beans on Season 22 and Arie Luyendyk Jr. and I gotta say — the details are pretty juicy.
Apparently he’s the same man we know from 2012 on Emily Maynard’s season and “so romantic.”
“He’s the same great guy that everybody fell in love with on Emily’s season,” Harrison told EW. “That’s something I’m excited about because some of us got to know and love Arie but a lot of [people] didn’t watch five years ago and they don’t know him as well. People have to remember how incredibly popular Arie was and how much, I mean every woman for two to three years after stopped me and would talk about how he’s the greatest kisser and he’s so romantic.” OMG!
Not only that, Harrison said on this season of The Bachelor, the women absolutely loved Arie, which should make for a very interesting watch. “I’m happy for the people who knew and loved Arie, but then there’s those that maybe they’re a little younger or they didn’t see the show and I’m actually more excited for them to get to know Arie,” Harrison said. “I’m excited for people to get to know Arie for the first time because he’s a great guy. He’s dynamic and yeah, he is a good kisser and he makes these women feel things very quickly. They fell for him very very quickly.” Well, that will make handing out roses pretty tough.
Chris may have a lot of faith in Arie, but apparently, the fans of the reality show weren’t so keen on the choice. “I know some people that were like, ‘Why Arie?’ Trust me. I’m fine starting slow and people saying, ‘Oh I don’t know,’ and then word of mouth spreads and then people start talking and then the next [week], everybody’s like, ‘You have to be watching this.’ I know that’s the way it will be with Arie.” Now that sounds exciting.
Harrison is just as excited as I am, considering he sees so much potential in Arie like he did with previous bachelors. “The beauty of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette is that every season is different. There’s a reason I still care after 16 years and it’s because it’s different every time. Doing it with Arie is not like doing the show with Rachel [Lindsay] or doing it with Ben [Higgins] or Nick [Viall] or Kaitlyn [Bristowe]. They all bring their own spin to the show so the idea is basically the same, but Arie’s take on it is 100 percent different than anything you’ve ever seen before and that’s one of the things I love about the show. It really is a new story and a new journey every time.” I cannot wait to see what Season 22 offers for all of us fans.
The season premieres Jan. 1 at 8 p.m., so get your popcorn ready, this season is going to be *amazing.*