It’s a New Era of Women Supporting Women on Reality TV

The March 25th finale of The Bachelor had a happy ending when BachelorJoey Graziadei and Kelsey Anderson got engaged, but the highlight of the finale was the moment shared between the final two women: Kelsey and Daisy Kent. They made Bachelor history by being the first women to talk to each other on proposal day. During the final day of filming, two women shared their experiences from the final week and offered each other emotional support, knowing one of them was about to get their heart broken while the other was about to become engaged. The old mentality of, “I’m not here to make friends,” and tearing each other down to get the man is over with. These women are taking control of their narrative and showing that no matter what the outcome of the show is, they can all come out on top.

After Kelsey and Daisy compared experiences from the final week of the dating competition, it became clear to Daisy that Joey and Kelsey were meant to be together, and she was meant to leave the show alone. The women took their support for each other one step further by riding in the car together to the proposal site where Kelsey waited for Daisy and Joey to have their final moment together. After her breakup, Daisy walks back to the car and embraces Kelsey with a hug before leaving. Daisy told Kelsey, who shared throughout the season the difficulty of losing her mom, “I know your mom’s going to be looking down at this moment, and she’s going to be so happy and so proud of you.” Despite experiencing a devastating heartbreak and knowing another woman was going to get what she wanted, Daisy showed up for Kelsey at that moment. She showed that women can support each other’s victories even in their toughest moments.

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The Bachelor

TV-14

Romance

Reality-TV

Game Show

A single bachelor dates multiple women over several weeks, narrowing them down to hopefully find his true love.

Release Date

March 25, 2002

Creator

Mike Fleiss

Cast

Chris Harrison , Brad Womack , Jesse Palmer , Sean Lowe

Main Genre

Reality-TV

Seasons

28

“I’m Not Here to Make Friends” Is Over

The cliché Bachelor line no longer holds true.

In prior seasons of The Bachelor, many women notoriously used the phrase, “I’m not here to make friends.” This was their excuse for being malicious to other women in pursuit of love. Contestant Courtney Robertson even used the line as the title of her 2014 book. A decade later, the women on the show changed the narrative. While the show still showcases drama among the women and catty fights that inevitably occur, it’s not the focus of the show, and it’s not because they aren’t supporting each other. Drama is unavoidable when you have a group of humans, men or women, in a house together without any contact with the outside world. But what’s so unique about the relationship these women form is that no one else knows what they go through. It’s a unique experience that only other women who were there can fully understand on a deep level. Being able to form meaningful friendships is realistic, healthy, and important to show.

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Daisy’s support of Kelsey continued on After the Final Rose where she expressed to Joey how happy she is for the newly engaged couple. “I can’t wait to watch you and Kelsey grow,” she said during her first conversation with Joey since the breakup. Joey also took the time to acknowledge the support Daisy and Kelsey gave each other, saying that Daisy pulling for him meant she was also pulling for Kelsey. To end the show, host Jesse Palmer brought Kelsey and Daisy out on the stage together, where Kelsey summed things up perfectly with one line: “Daisy is beautiful and amazing, and that doesn’t, and will never, take away from me being beautiful and amazing.” That moment they shared on the stage together exemplifies a beautiful female friendship.

The Golden Bachelor Put a Spotlight on Change

When The Golden Bachelor premiered in September 2023, it showcased strong female friendships throughout the season. Since the airing of the show, ABC has continued to use the women from the show in other shows within the franchise. They made multiple appearances on this season of The Bachelor and offered words of advice and encouragement to the final three contestants. Two of the most popular contestants from the show, Kathy Swarts and Susan Noles, are hosting Bachelor Happy Hour: Golden Hour podcast, together launching March 28. Four contestants – Kathy, Susan, Leslie Fhima, and Sandra Mason – were shown sitting together during After the Final Rose. The long-lasting friendships these women formed and the way the franchise has showcased these bonds over the past six months have paved the way for more of this moving forward.

Change Can Be Seen Across Multiple Shows

This is a cultural shift that can be seen on more shows than just The Bachelor. On season 6 of Love is Blind, contestant Jessica Vestalmade it a point to supportChelsea Blackwell at the reunion. Jessica and Chelsea were both dating Jimmy Presnell in the pods before Jimmy proposed to Chelsea. The couple didn’t make it to the altar on the show and Chelsea was heavily scrutinized by fans. It would have been easy for Jessica to jump on the bandwagon and bash Chelsea, saying Jimmy made the wrong choice. But she didn’t do that. She stuck up for Chelsea, showed her support, and expressed that her and Chelsea are very close friends. It shows that despite both wanting a relationship with the same man, two women can be friends. Other shows like Love Island and Farmer Wants a Wife have also been indicative of this changing tide.

What’s Next For Bachelor Nation

Jenn Tran was announced as the next Bachelorette.

Jenn Tran, a 26-year-old physician assistant student, will be the first Asian American lead on any show within the franchise. The announcement came as a surprise to some fans who were expecting runner-up Daisy or controversial contestant Maria Georgas to be the next lead. During After the Final Rose, Daisy revealed she’s not ready to be the Bachelorette, and Maria showed her support for Jenn while sitting in the live studio audience. The show is expected to premiere in July, but no premiere date has been announced. ABC released photos of the 28 men who will be vying for Jenn’s heart, giving fans a sneak peek at the upcoming season. It’s still unclear if Bachelor in Paradise will be back for season 11 this summer and while The Golden Bachelorette has been announced, there’s been no news about the lead or timeline. All seasons of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette are available to stream on Hulu.Watch on Hulu