In June, ABC announced that Matt James would become the first Black Bachelor in the franchise, exciting relief and joy that the franchise seemed to moving forward and responding to critics of its decidedly non-diverse line-up.
As we count down to the premiere of Clare Crawley‘s The Bachelorette, ABC is revealing a look at the 43 women who may appear on James’ season. It’s not the official line-up, more of an unofficial official preview. A quick glance finds many women in their 20s, with four of the 43 in their 30s. James is 28. The only info being released thus far on the possible ladies are their names, ages and hometowns.
James told GMA of the call for a Black Bachelor, led by Rachel Lindsay, the franchise’s first Black Bachelorette in June: “When Rachel speaks, we listen. She has a very important voice in all of this being the first Black woman, person of color, to have a lead. So, I think that we're all following suit in that conversation and this is hopefully the first of many Black men to be in this position that I'm in now.”
Tyler Cameron, James’ BFF, shared the key to James’ heart with Us: “Somebody that is ready for an adventure, ready to get up and go. You got to be super active to be with Matt. But also someone who’s able to have, like, serious talks. Matt is deep. You need to be able to have these big, connecting conversations. I think that’s going to be super important for him while finding his partner, someone who can really connect on a deeper level with. Hopefully, he’s able to find that person quickly.”