Millions of Bachelor fans watched Ben Higgins propose to Lauren Bushnell on Monday night. The newly engaged couple did their media tour on Tuesday and were repeatedly asked when they will get married and if they will televise their wedding on ABC.
Although Ben and Lauren turned down a quickie wedding on ABC’s After the Final Rose ceremony because they want to throw a big wedding for their friends, blogger Reality Steve is skeptical that they will make it to the altar. Why doesn’t Reality Steve think Lauren and Ben will get married, and what does the Bachelor have to say about his future with Lauren now that the show is over?
With past seasons of the Bachelor and Bachelorette , Steve’s readers often asked how long he expects the couple’s relationship to last. Last year, he predicted that former Bachelor Chris Soules would not marry Whitney Bischoff and two months later, they announced the end of their engagement. After Shawn Booth proposed to Bachelorette Kaitlyn Bristowe last summer, Steve told his readers that their relationship wouldn’t last long, and he didn’t see them getting married. Although they are still engaged, the couple has continued to shrug off the “ when’s the wedding ” question, so time will tell if they will get hitched.
On Tuesday, Reality Steve wrote that Lauren and Ben have a “30/70 chance to make it” and then changed his prediction to “25/75.” That’s not optimistic at all, especially for fans who are really hoping to see their relationship work out. However, Steve does give Ben credit for not going on Dancing with the Stars , a show that seemed to put the proverbial nail in the coffin for Chris Soules and Whitney Bischoff.
“I’ll believe a wedding when ABC makes an announcement… Real life sets in now, and EVERY couple is happy as clams the day after the ATFR because they get to finally go public with their relationship, yet a majority still don’t make it… I say I’ll give them a 30/70 chance to make it. That’s fairly high, no? What optimism I have. Ok fine. 25/75.”
The Bachelor franchise isn’t known for producing long-lasting relationships. According to Just Jared , after 20 seasons of the Bachelor, only one couple married their final pick — Sean Lowe and Catherine Giudici. The Bachelorette has a slightly better track record, with three out of 11 couples tying the knot — Trista and Ryan Sutter, Ashley and J.P. Rosenbaum, and Desiree and Chris Siegfried.
Hours after the finale aired on ABC, Lauren and Ben started a whirlwind media tour in New York City. On Tuesday afternoon, they appeared on AOL Build where they took questions from fans who were present at the event and talked about their future as a couple. Ben said that they planned to stay in New York City for a few days, but the couple would be getting back to normal life later in the week when they head to his home in Denver.
As far as their plans to get married, the couple does not want to wait too long and are excited to have a “big celebration” with family and friends. “We don’t want to push back a wedding,” Ben told the audience at the AOL-hosted event. “We’re looking at 2016 or early 2017.”
“You’re my person.” #TheBachelor https://t.co/bEITTRGCJb — The Bachelor (@BachelorABC) March 15, 2016
As to whether Ben and Lauren will agree to a wedding on television, Ben said that, while they are not against it, those conversations [with ABC] “haven’t started yet,” and they will start talking about the wedding plans once they settle in back in Denver. Although some fans were hoping Ben would pick JoJo , Ben is confident in his choice and says the drama is behind him. And yes, they plan to watch JoJo’s season of the Bachelorette when it premieres in May. Do you think Ben Higgins and Lauren Bushnell will get married? [Image via ABC Television Network]