“The Bachelor” franchise doesn’t usually throw curve-ball leads out of nowhere, but the announcement of Clare Crawley as the new Bachelorette had many people shocked. The 38-year-old woman was announced as the new lead on “Good Morning America” on March 2.
For those who don’t know, Crawley first appeared on season 18 of “The Bachelor,” where she famously told off Juan Pablo Galavis for treating her horribly during the season. Crawley then appeared on two seasons of “Bachelor in Paradise” and “Bachelor Winter Games.”
While “The Bachelor” has picked leads that haven’t been featured on the franchise in years such as Arie Luyendyk, Jr. and Nick Viall, who both had many years between their television appearance according to Us Weekly, Crawley is the oldest female lead to be chosen. Her age, however, makes her a perfect choice for the franchise.
Many critics believe that Crawley is too old for the franchise. The last few leads of “The Bachelor” and “The Bachelorette” have been in their 20s, according to USA Today. Specifically, the last Bachelorette— Hannah Brown—was only 24.
Crawley hit back at the age critics, expressing that she often feels younger than she is, which is why she isn’t concerned about being the Bachelorette. However, she does wonder if her contestants will be ready for her. Crawley told “Good Morning America” her age will be an advantage during her season.
“A lot of people put it out there as this negative thing, but for me, it just is more years under my belt, more learning and knowing what I want, what I don’t want and what I won’t settle for,” Crawley told “GMA.”
The decision to cast an older lead will be beneficial to the franchise. As Crawley explained, she knows what she is looking for. Although other leads have claimed the same statement, with more appearances on “The Bachelor” franchise and more real-world experiences, Crawley should actually have an idea of how to handle the drama the show always has while still finding love.
The franchise’s latest seasons have had an unprecedented amount of drama between the contestants as opposed to a focus on romance, according to Buzzfeed. Even though ratings are rising, it’s been detrimental to the show’s original concept—finding love in an unconventional way—in favor of purposefully creating drama by digging up humiliating past events.
While this drama has been occurring for many seasons, Peter Weber’s season has been one of the worst to date since many of the contestants have acted incredibly vicious toward each other. Most of the women are in their early 20s—despite Weber being 28—and there have been many questions regarding whether the women are looking for marriage or an influencer career.
ABC’s Senior Vice President of Alternative Series, Late Night Programming Rob Mills seemed to insinuate the age of contestants playing a part in the drama; however, he didn’t indicate whether or not age played a factor in whether the women were ready for marriage, according to Cinema Blend.
While age isn’t an indicator of when a person can fall in love, there is a level of maturity that people must consider when trying to be in a relationship. Even if someone can be ready for marriage and children, that doesn’t mean they have the same experience an older person could have.
Age may be just a number, but Crawley’s could be an important one to shifting “The Bachelor” franchise back toward the original purpose of the show. Crawley has experience on different shows and isn’t afraid to speak her mind. Plus, she has the support of many Bachelor Nation alumni who believe she is truly on the show to find love.
Although Chris Harrison will most likely proclaim Crawley’s season to be the “the most dramatic season yet,” let’s hope she finds love and proves that sometimes aging up isn’t a bad decision.
Rebecca Williamson is an English creative writing and communication double major junior who would love to talk about “The Bachelor” finale.