Samantha NeelyUSA TODAY NETWORK - Florida
Get your wine and snacks ready, a new season of ABC's "The Bachelorette" starts soon.
Floridian Jenn Tran's history-making premiere comes on tonight, with 25 vying for the Miami resident's heart and possible hand in marriage.
But who are some of the top Bachelor Floridians who have already won the hearts of Bachelor Nation? From hunky heartthrobs to controversial villains, fans of the over 20-year-old reality show have seen iconic players come out the state and onto our TV screens.
Who is Jenn Tran? New lead lives in Miami
Jenn Tran is a 26-year-old physician assistant student living in Miami. According toBachelor Nation Wiki, she's originally from Hillsdale, New Jersey.
"Jenn is bubbly and compassionate, and has dedicated her life to helping others. She is currently studying to become a physician assistant, and while she is passionate about working in health care, she is also ready to prioritize finding love," her Bachelor Nation Wiki biography says.
Meet the top Bachelor Nation alumni hailing from Florida
Before the next set of contestants for the franchise get our roses, get to know some of the top contestants from the Sunshine State:
Tyler Cameron is from Jupiter, Florida
The contestant that has the ability to make Bachelor Nation, and some supermodels, swoon.
With his sense of humor, sensitive side and quickness to defend leadHannah Brown,Tyler Cameron of Jupitereasily became a fan favorite during season 15 of "The Bachelorette" in 2019. Both longtime fans and casual watchers alike watched in agony as Brown broke up with Tyler for dog food jingle writer, Jed Wyatt.
Despite not returning to any of the spinoffs and rejecting the title role of the Bachelor on the following season, Tyler has remained popular with over two million followers on Instagram. Following the show's premiere, he datedsupermodel Gigi Hadidfor the rest of that year and started a career as a model.
Back in April, Cameron released "Going Home with Tyler Cameron" on Amazon Prime, which showcased his journey “from bachelor, to builder, to businessman" while renovating houses in Jupiter.
Corinne Olympios is from Miami
For longtime Bachelor fans, this contestant goes down in the reality show history books.
Corinne Olympiosis known for her one-liners and her feud with fellow season 25 contestant Taylor Nolan while fighting forNick Viall's hand in marriage in 2017. Who could forget the iconic moment when Olympios took a nap during one of the rose ceremonies and defended herself by saying, "Michael Jordan took naps." In the end, her jabs and scheming weren't enough for Viall.
She was invited back for the next season of "Bachelor in Paradise." However, she ended up quitting the show after week one when ABC was forced to turn off cameras and suspend production to investigate allegations of misconduct. Someone in production saw Olympios and fellowBIPseason 4 castmateDeMario Jackson allegedly engage in an encounter that they thought wasn't consensual.
According toPeople, however, Corinne came out to deny anything non-consensual happened after the investigation was done and apologized to Jackson for how the media was portraying him.
As of now, she has used her fame to grow her business as the CEO and founder of her jewelry, apparel, and home décor line, Aura Sugar Co. She currently has 1 million followers on Instagram.
Juan Pablo Galavis is from Miami
The infamous Bachelor lead turned villain during his own season.
The Venezuelan-born professional soccer player turned heads as a contestant vying for then-Desiree Hastock's heart in 2013. After being eliminated on week nine into the season, Galavis was chosen as the first male Latino-lead for the franchise.
However, things quickly got off to a rocky start when he made negative comments about the possibility of a gay bachelor taking over the lead. He later claimed that his comments that were mistranslated from his native Spanish and taken out of context.
During his actual season, contestants complained the single father was notably uninterested in most of them and made multiple remarks about them. The Cut said ABC had to laterissue multiple apologiesfor his “careless, thoughtless and insensitive” comments both before and during the show's airing.
In the end, he refused to give out a ring to his final pick, Nikki Ferrell, but the duo dated for a few months after the season wrapped before calling it quits.
Rachel Recchia is from Clermont, Florida
Rachel Recchiaheld her own during the franchise's first double lead season, sharing the role of Bachelorette with Colorado nurseGabby Windey, after the nation saw them both brutally dumped by Clayton Echard.
The Clermont pilot ran into multiple speed bumps while navigating her men, from sending home a guy on her first one-on-one date to having guys reject her for Windey's rose. In the end, she found a spark with California contractor Tino Franco and he proposed on the finale of the show. Yet, just as viewers celebrated the engagement of the happy couple, they were whiplashed by the hour-long break-up footage of Recchia confronting Franco about his cheating.
Recchia also didn't find a match on the beaches on Mexico, with "Bachelor in Paradise" viewers commenting that she was put through the ringer. After unsuccessful dates with several guys, she ended up leaving the show on her own.
Ellen Goltzer is from Delray Beach, Florida
Ellen Goltzer, a retired teacher from Delray Beach, was a beloved contestant on the inaugural season of "The Golden Bachelor." She was sent home in week five.
"She spends her time playing pickleball, golf, and card games with her two sons. Ellen also reads the newspaper, watches television and plays bocce ball with her girlfriends in her free time," according to ABC.
Goltzer won over audiences with the story of her friend Roberta, her childhood friend who passed away from cancer. She said they were fans of the flagship show and her friend pushed her to apply for the "Golden Bachelor" spinoff.
April Kirkwood is from Port St. Lucie, Florida
April Kirkwood made it through four weeks on the show before "Golden Bachelor" Gerry Turner sent her home to Port St. Lucie. On the show,she became a fan-favoritewith her chicken references, dancing and her gift to Turner — a calendar containing only the month of April.
Her first entrance garnered attention from viewers, especially after she said in a confessional she wanted Turner to know "her eggs are fresh." The entrance received mixed reactions with Kirkwood saying she saw people say that she should be "in an insane asylum."
"I didn't understand how they made that connection," Kirkwood said. "I am eccentric and I am whimsical — which is a nice word for eccentric — but I didn't think that it was crazy."
Bryan Abasolo is from Miami
Abasolo, a chiropractor, was recipient of former Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay's final rose in 2017, eventually marrying in August 2019.
In January of this year, Abasolo filed for divorce after four years of marriage. He listed "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for his split from Lindsay.
"After more than 4 years of marriage, Rachel and I have made the difficult decision to part ways and start anew," Abasolo said in a statement posted to hisInstagram page (now deleted). "Sometimes loving yourself and your partner means you must let go."
Peter Izzo is from Port St. Joe, Florida
One of the cheesiest reality TV show villains ever.
Peter "Pizza Peter" Izzoruffled some feathers on season 18 of "The Bachelorette" with Minnesota-based teacher Michelle Young. Fellow contestants were quick to notice that all of Izzo's conversation led back to two things — pizza or his own restaurant in Port St. Joe, Peter's Pizzeria. It got especially heated when Izzo threw Will Urena's prize from a challenge into a pool, leading to his elimination on week three.
The "pizzapreneur" joined Season 8 of "Bachelor in Paradise" in a second chance to find love. However, he quit the same episode after rubbing beach-goers the wrong way and not finding a match in time. He currently has 13,200 followers on Instagram and has opened asecond pizzeria in Boca Raton.
Kat Izzo is from Tampa, Florida
Like Girod,Katherine Izzoalso competed on the 27th season of “The Bachelor,” as well as season 8's “Bachelor in Paradise" where she made her debut as a villain.
She ended up getting engaged to contestant John HenrySpurlock. However, the two announced their breakup with a joint Instagram post (which was later deleted at an unknown date).
What time is 'The Bachelorette' on?
"The Bachelorette"season 21 will premiere on ABC at 8 p.m. EST Monday, July 8, 2024.
How do I stream 'The Bachelorette'?
Episodes of "The Bachelorette" season 21 with Jenn Tran stream on Hulu every Tuesday (the reality TV dating competition airs on Monday nights).
