Luke Pell On The Fence About Dating Raven Gates, Looks For Emotional Connection

The Bachelor Nation may seem convinced that Luke Pell and Raven Gates will be perfect for each other, but the Bachelorette alum is not getting his hopes up. Although he found Raven attractive, Luke admitted that he’s not letting his guard down just yet.

In an interview with E! News, Luke Pell shared that he has been getting tweets from the Bachelor Nation saying how he and Raven Gates should be together. After Raven announced that she will be on the next season of Bachelor in Paradise, tweets immediately started pouring in, asking the Bachelorette alum to consider going on BIP Season 4. Although thrilled with the encouraging messages he has been receiving online, Luke explained that forging a connection is not that easy.

“I am sure I will meet her [Raven] at some point and then we’ll see. She may be like, ‘He’s a freaking weirdo,’ and I may think the same thing. So I have no clue. We’ll just have to see,” he said.

Speaking to Life & Style early this month, Luke Pell admitted that he did not understand why people assumed that he and Raven Gates will make a good match just because they had similar backgrounds. Although he found Raven “cute,” Luke pointed out that there has to be something more than meets the eye. He explained that more than anything, he’s looking for a “real emotional connection” this time around.

“I don’t understand why people think that because she’s from a farm and I grew up on the farm that it’s like magic. I have to meet somebody that I know the chemistry is there. Attractiveness, now, is less and less physical because that’s easy. I want a real emotional connection.”

Even if they ended up having a lot of things in common, that doesn’t mean they will be the perfect fit. According to Luke, the Bachelor Nation assumed that just because they are two very similar people, they should end up together.

“I think that’s really a TV fantasy. They want to see two very similar characters be together. That’s not necessarily in real life. Sometimes, opposites attract, or sometimes people’s personalities are completely different and they’re a good match. It’s hard to say,” Luke said.

However, it seems like it’s not only the fans who see a connection between Luke Pell and Raven Gates. As In Touch Weekly previously reported, Raven was originally cast as one of the contestants for Luke’s season, before the producers decided to replace him last minute with Nick Viall. Bachelor showrunners then decided to keep Raven for Nick’s season, thinking she’s a “cute girl.” Clearly, this proved to be the right decision, as Raven eventually ended up being the Season 21 runner-up, losing to Vanessa Grimaldi.

Luke Pell also clarified reports that he’s dating Danielle Lobard, another Bachelor contestant from Nick’s season. Following reports that Luke and Danielle acted “sweet and affectionate” with each other at an event in Miami, he insisted that fans were just quick to jump to conclusion whenever they see Bachelor alumni interacting with each other. They might not be dating, but Luke only had nice things to say about Danielle.

“We’re not exclusively dating, no. We are not… I will say this—[Danielle] is great. We have a lot of fun together the few times that we’ve been able to hang out and try to get to know each other.”

Tell us! Do you think Luke Pell will go on Bachelor in Paradise Season 4? Are you Team Raven or Team Danielle? Sound off in the comments below.

Tune in for more Bachelor in Paradise Season 4 spoilers and cast updates.

[Featured Image by Jonathan Leibson/Getty Images]