When it was announced on the Bachelor in Paradise after-show After Paradise on Tuesday night that the next star of The Bachelor is Nick Viall, many viewers expressed shock and surprise on blogs and social media. People were caught off-guard that Nick was chosen to be the Season 21 star not just because he has already been on The Bachelorette twice and is a controversial figure from his time on those two seasons, but also because Luke Pell and Chase McNary, from the most recent season of The Bachelorette , starring JoJo Fletcher, were widely reported to be the frontrunners. There is also the big fact that Nick can still be currently seen on the spin-off Bachelor in Paradise , where he’s coupled up with Jen Saviano.
Obviously, the fact that Nick was chosen as the next Bachelor means that his relationship with Jen doesn’t last, although at this point it remains to be seen whether viewers will see them decide to part ways on the two-night finale, airing next week, or if they continued seeing one another for a bit after filming ended.
Right after the big Bachelor announcement was made, Jen posted a tweet that suggests that she doesn’t want to see Nick pursue 25 other women or that if she does tune in, she’ll be sure to have lots of wine on hand.
Later, Jen put up another post that suggests that she’s less than pleased about the latest development. She posted a photo of herself holding a plane ticket from Fort Lauderdale to New York City. Jen commented that sometimes, you just need to book “ a F* it flight ” to the Big Apple. Is she going to New York City in order to distract herself from all of the news about Nick and/or to get over her heartbreak?
Some viewers posted comments telling Jen that she’s a great woman and that she’ll find someone soon. Some wrote that they’re sorry that things didn’t work out between her and Nick. Some even suggested that she go on The Bachelor again to pursue Nick.
Will Jen actually do that? Nick may be receptive to seeing Jen again, since he himself has repeatedly gone on the franchise in search of love. Prior to Bachelor in Paradise , Nick was first the runner-up on Andi Dorfman’s season. He then returned the next season to pursue Kaitlyn Bristowe, where he also ended up being the runner-up.
Yet according to Jen Saviano, who was previously on Ben Higgins’ season of The Bachelor , viewers won’t be seeing her compete with other women for Nick Viall. In response to a person’s tweet pondering which former contestants will return to try and date Nick, Jen wrote that she won’t be one of them .
Jen posted other tweets that suggest that she and Nick didn’t end things on the best of terms. In response to one person who posted a photo of a quote suggesting that Nick isn’t everything, Jen wrote that she loves it.
Jen told another person who declared that no Bachelor will find anyone better than Jen that she loves her .
In contrast, both Andi Dorfman and Kaitlyn Bristowe gave public congratulatory messages to Nick. Andi, whose name has been frequently mentioned by Nick on Bachelor in Paradise during his feud with Josh Murray, wrote that Nick has always been genuine and real about finding love and wished him luck. Nick thanked Andi for her well wishes. It seems that Andi no longer has any ill feelings towards Nick for publicly revealing that they had sex together in the fantasy suite during her live After the Final Rose special. Perhaps she appreciates how Nick repeatedly disputed her ex-fiance Josh’s statements that her tell-all memoir, It’s Not Okay , was all fiction by pointing out that she wrote the truth about him?
Congrats, Nick. It’s been a long road but you’ve always been genuine and real about wanting to find love. Now it’s your turn! Best of luck ?
— Andi Dorfman (@AndiDorfman) August 31, 2016
Thanks Andi! https://t.co/EVztAhUkVJ
— Nick Viall (@NickViall) September 1, 2016
In a statement to People , Kaitlyn said that both she and Shawn Booth, with whom Nick clashed with for the entire season, especially after Kaitlyn revealed that she had sex with Nick during a date, wish Nick well .
“We both wish Nick well and good luck on his adventures!”
Kaitlyn also told Us Weekly that she’s happy for Nick and that he deserves to find love.
“I’m happy for him! Everyone deserves to find someone. I hope it works out.”
Perhaps Jen will post a public congratulatory note to Nick once the Bachelor in Paradise season ends?
#TheBachelor feels like a better title than runner-up. Congratulations @viallnicholas28! pic.twitter.com/cj43cHujXw
— Bachelor in Paradise (@BachParadise) August 31, 2016
On Wednesday, Entertainment Tonight reported that when one of its reporters spoke to Jen in Mexico, the day prior the filming of the finale, she admitted that Nick may not see a future with her but that she doesn’t want it to end.
“I don’t know. I know I don’t want to say goodbye to him. But I don’t know if [our connection is] strong enough in his eyes to make that commitment. It’s very possible that it could end tomorrow. I don’t want it to though.”
Jen did say that she doesn’t want Nick to propose since they’re not at that point yet.
“I wouldn’t want [Nick] to propose [on the finale], no. We’re just not there yet. I did come in the middle of this…I’m very happy with where we’re at, I just don’t know if it’s enough right now. Certainly not enough for an engagement.”
Jen also said that being on the show was “a really great experience” and despite the fact that Nick “can be a pain in the a** at times,” she “really enjoyed getting to know him.”
As previously reported by the Inquisitr , Nick admitted in a recent interview that he told other people, prior to going on Bachelor in Paradise , that he found Jen attractive and that she would be someone he would like to meet. Yet he denied Amanda Stanton and Josh Murray’s claim that he went on the show specifically for Jen.
A preview for next week’s two-part finale shows Nick Viall meeting with jeweler Neil Lane, Jen saying that Nick could lose her if he doesn’t open up more to her, and Jen walking towards Nick at the engagement podium. Nick can be heard saying that he and Jen can be the next couple to be engaged. Yet the preview then shows Nick, instead of crying happy tears, breaking down in pain and being consoled by Jen.
[Image via ABC/ Bachelor in Paradise ]