The first Asian American Bachelorette won’t have a lot of Asian American bachelors to choose from. Of the 19 contestants vying for her love, only one appears to be Asian.
His name is Thomas N, but little information has been released about him so far.
“It is unfortunate that there weren’t a lot of Asian men this season, Tran told Glamour. “Asian men haven’t always seen themselves in this position, and I am hoping that me being here and Thomas N. being there, that the both of us can inspire other Asian men to realize that they can do this too if they want.”
The Bachelor franchise has long been criticized for its lack of diversity, reports EW. That’s begun to change with the first Black Bachelorette and Bachelor, Rachel Lindsay and Matt James. The Golden Bachlor added a new twist recently with the introduction of contestants in their golden years.
Tran shared that her and Thomas immediately fond a connection through their shared Asian culture.
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“It’s not every day that you get to bond with somebody on your immigrant parents and you get to connect with somebody on that level because not everybody can understand that,” she said. “That was a really special conversation for me because he really understood where I was coming from, and my family means everything to me.”
She said Thomas understood the importance of family and appreciated the sacrifices Jenn’s immigrant parents made for her to give her a better life. She said having that conversation with Thomas “really meant the world.”
Past efforts at diversifying the show went sideways in 2021 when one of the contestants in James’ season acknowledged she attended an insensitive and racist party in 2018. She apologized and so did the show’s executive producers.
“That season went wrong on so many levels. We did not protect him (James) as we should have. The finale of that season was the darkest day I’ve had on this franchise,” executive producer Bennett Graebner told the Los Angeles Times.
While viewers can likely expect the usual twists and turns on the show, Jenn promises that this year’s finale will be a strong one.
“It’s definitely an ending that I didn’t see coming for myself. My family won’t see it coming, and I don’t think the viewers will see it coming too. I’m excited for it all to unfold.”
The summer series debuts Monday, July 8 on ABC.
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