Can the Bachelor Franchise Heal Its Broken Heart? |
These days, the Bachelor enterprise is having an identity crisis. A once revolutionary franchise has become a relic; efforts to reinvent The Bachelor and its spin-offs have proven futile. The landmark 10th season of Bachelor in Paradise debuts in the shadow of Love Island, and ahead of Netflix’s Perfect Match. And while it would be impossible to change the franchise’s fortunes with one juicy season, that’s what the Bachelor-verse needs to do right now, writes Savannah Walsh. When the original series began, “The formula was perfect,” says Chad Kultgen, coauthor of How to Win The Bachelor and host of the Game of Roses podcast. “There was no real competition in other reality dating formats. Once those shows start coming in, they understand how to make contemporary reality dating formats way better than Bachelor does. They’re just picking the bones of a dying dinosaur.”
Elsewhere in HWD, Richard Lawson cheers the official return of HBO Max; Emma Watson enjoys life outside the spotlight; Catherine Hardwicke reveals the (rather insulting) gift she got after directing the juggernaut Twilight; and Nicholas Hoult gives Brad Pitt a run for his money as the man at the center of this summer’s most stylish press tour. |
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