Bachelor fans who are hoping Josh Murray will be ABC’s next leading man may be disappointed when the announcement is made by host Chris Harrison later this summer. Instead, one of Bachelorette Kaitlyn Bristowe’s frontrunners, Ben Higgins , is rumored to be a top pick for the 2016 Bachelor .
According to Reality Steve , Ben and Josh are both being considered to hand out roses in the upcoming season of ABC’s popular reality show , but “it’s looking like it might be Ben.” While the network has not confirmed either guy for the role, Ben is a fan favorite on Kaitlyn’s season, and he’s one of the few guys who hasn’t caused a bit of drama.
“All I’m hearing is that it’s either Josh or Ben with consensus so far being it’s looking like it might be Ben… this official announcement isn’t coming til later this summer, but that’s where it stands now.”
The big question is, would Ben Higgins be a boring Bachelor , and how will Josh Murray’s fans feel about not seeing Andi’s ex get another chance at love? And what about Nick Viall , or Shawn Booth — who are both rumored to be contenders for the upcoming Bachelor gig.
[Spoilers ahead]
After his well-publicized break-up with former Bachelorette Andi Dorfman , Josh has been making a valiant attempt at keeping his name in the media. From his constant promotion of Advocare products, to hosting charity events, Josh seems to enjoy the limelight. His fans love him, too — with over 184,000 followers on Twitter and 533,000 Instagram fans, there is no doubt that he would be an extremely popular Bachelor .
Excited to join @YWExperience and walk the Wedding Catwalk at #YWEAtlanta on June 14th! Tix: http://t.co/aSNzCt0JDj pic.twitter.com/BSQCPjAzLt
— Josh Allan Murray (@jmurbulldog) June 5, 2015
Ben trails behind Josh on social media, with 133,000 Twitter followers and 46,000 fans on Instagram , but that may change when Kaitlyn season wraps up in July. The handsome 26-year-old business analyst was charming on his recent one-on-one date with Kaitlyn, and kept fans entertained during a sex-ed group date earlier in the season, but he hasn’t had much air time since then.
Ben Higgins from the Bachelorette is so handsome #MaybeItsTheFlannel pic.twitter.com/mQAcJUFYZu
— Becca McInally (@beccamcinally) June 17, 2015
Despite his charm and wit, there doesn’t seem to be a big connection between Katilyn and Ben, but he is rumored to make it to the overnight dates on this season of the Bachelorette . According to a previous report from the Inquisitr , Ben will spend the night in the Fantasy Suite with Kaitlyn , only to be sent home at the rose ceremony.
Fans will see Ben on the Men Tell All (July 20), but he will not be joining six of his Bachelorette cast mates on Bachelor in Paradise this August. All the more reason to suspect that he could be in talks to become the next Bachelor .
Although there are rumors that Nick Viall or Shawn Booth could get the gig, it’s likely fans won’t see either guy hand out roses in 2016. Spoilers indicate that Nick proposes to Kaitlyn, but she chooses to give her final rose to Shawn instead. Because they are the rumored final two, this would put them out of the running for the Bachelor , according to Reality Steve .
Would you like to see Ben Higgins named the next Bachelo r?
[Image: ABC]