After the success of The Golden Bachelor Season 1, The Golden Bachelorette is officially in the works. When the newest Bachelor Nation spin-off was announced, viewers began to speculate on who the first lead will be. Lucky for ABC, there are a number of women who would be an excellent choice. Here are all of our predictions on who The Golden Bachelorette may be, as well as who has been rumored to be in the running!
Leslie Fhima was the runner-up on The Golden Bachelor, which makes her an obvious choice for The Golden Bachelorette lead. Throughout the season, Leslie built a strong relationship with Gerry Turner, who clearly adored her. In the end, however, Gerry chose to propose to Theresa Nist. Leslie left the season heartbroken, as she felt too used to not being chosen.
While Leslie’s calling might not have been to marry Gerry, it very well might be leading the first season of The Golden Bachelorette. Leslie has the perfect personality for the role, as she is wise, intelligent, and has a great sense of humor. On The Golden Bachelor, Leslie was one of the liveliest ladies in the room. After her heartbreak from Gerry, Leslie really deserves a second chance at finding love.
Another good choice for The Golden Bachelorette is Faith Martin. Faith was sent home after hometowns week, and finished The Golden Bachelor in third place. This came as a shock, as Gerry and Faith had admitted they loved each other during her hometown date. Faith definitely went into the rose ceremony confident, and it was hard to watch her go home after such a surprising heartbreak. After everything she went through, Faith deserves a second chance!
Like Leslie, Faith is well rounded and would be perfect for The Golden Bachelorette lead. Faith is a nature lover, and enjoys riding horses in her free time. During her hometown with Gerry, she even revealed that she rides her horse to the grocery store on occasion! In addition to being a fan of the outdoors, Faith is a talented singer. Faith sang a song to Gerry on night one, which might’ve helped her to secure his first impression rose!
In addition to Leslie and Faith, there are several other ladies from The Golden Bachelor who would make amazing Golden Bachelorettes. One of these women would be Sandra Mason, who became an instant fan favorite for her wicked sense of humor. Sandra always offered an interesting perspective on things, and would surely make an entertaining lead.
Another good choice could be Susan Noles, who made it to the top six along with Sandra. Susan was a light in every room she entered, who never failed to bring the positive energy. After her time on The Golden Bachelor, Susan went on to officiate The Golden Wedding. Susan was also a part of the iconic ASKN alliance, which brought a ton of laughs. It would be wonderful to see Susan get another chance at love on The Golden Bachelorette.
The final contender for The Golden Bachelorette is ASKN’s ringleader Kathy Swarts. While Kathy was somewhat of a villain on The Golden Bachelor, she ended her time on the show as a hero. After telling Theresa to zip it, Kathy redeemed herself by zipping up Theresa’s wedding dress in a hilarious moment. Kathy also hosted The Golden Wedding, where her hysterical personality continued to shine through. I would personally love to see Kathy have her own season!
The Golden Bachelorette will most likely be one of the women from The Golden Bachelor, but you can never be too sure when it comes to Bachelor Nation. It has recently been rumored that actress Susan Lucci could potentially be in the running. Susan is 77, and recently lost her spouse of over 50 years. It’s pretty clear that Susan has the qualifications for the role, but does she want it?
Another A-lister who has recently been rumored to be up for the role is Kathie Lee Gifford. During a recent appearance on The Today Show, Kathie hinted that she might be down to be The Golden Bachelorette. While nothing is confirmed, it is possible that any of these women could be chosen as The Golden Bachelorette’s first leading lady!
TELL US – WHO WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE AS THE GOLDEN BACHELORETTE?
The 90 Day Fiancé franchise has had hundreds of memorable moments over the years, with some including proposals. Since 90 Day Fiancé and its various spin-offs focus on the K1 visa and marriage process, it is no surprise that dozens of proposals have happened onscreen. We just can’t forget these four proposals, that took place on different spin-offs over the seasons. We will warn you though, that only one of them is memorable for its romance factor!
John McManus proposed to Megan Brown at the Tell All?
John McManus shocked fans when he pulled out a ring to propose to his girlfriend Megan Brown, for several reasons. During their time on 90 Day: The Single Life Season 4, the couple’s relationship moved particularly fast. John ultimately gave in to Megan’s pleas for him to move in with her, but he appeared to feel rushed by everything going on.
Furthermore, John emphasized on several occasions that he didn’t want to rush into an engagement. While Megan seemed to have a timeline on things, John preferred to live in the moment. It was always clear that John was in love with Megan, but no one expected him to propose to her so quickly.
It was an interesting choice to propose at the Tell All, which surely isn’t the most romantic place to get engaged. Of course, the episode cut off just as John got down on his knee, so we will have to wait to hear his proposal speech! Either way, we will surely never forget this interesting moment at The Single Life Tell All.
Kenny Niedermeier & Armando Rubio had a romantic engagement
Kenneth “Kenny” Niedermeier and Armando Rubio are one of the most beloved couples from the 90 Day Fiancé franchise. Unlike many of the franchise’s other couples, Kenny and Armando just have a beautiful relationship worth rooting for. Kenny and Armando have done a lot to make their relationship work, so it is wonderful to see them still doing well.
The couple’s 90 Day journey began on 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way Season 2, when Kenny moved to Mexico to be with Armando. After living together for some time, Kenny decided that it was time to propose to the love of his life.
After secretly inviting two of his daughters to watch, Kenny took Armando to the beach. Take notes, John, this is a much better place for a romantic proposal! When Kenny popped the question, Armando cried tears of joy and happily accepted. The cherry on top was Kenny’s daughters cheering from the cliffs above the beach, which was a surprise for Armando. This was easily the best proposal in 90 Day Fiancé history!
Brandan DeNuccio proposed to Mary Demasu-ay in their store’s backroom
Alright, time to go back to the more unconventional proposals. Brandan DeNuccio wasted no time proposing to Mary Demasu-ay on The Other Way Season 5, but he chose an interesting place to do it. After moving to The Philippines to be with Mary, Brandan quickly realized that they needed a source of income. As a result, the couple decided to open up a small store to sell snacks and essentials.
One day, Brandan asked Mary to talk in the store’s backroom. After rambling about having not rehearsed, Brandan proposed to Mary while standing. The poor guy was too nervous to even get down on the knee. At first, Mary was understandably stunned as it was all so random. It was evident that Brandan was nervous, but this proposal was just bizarre!
Steven Johnston asked Alina Johnston to marry him with a song
Steven Johnston wins the award for the cringiest 90 Day Fiancé proposal by a long shot. On The Other Way Season 3, Steven became a villain after being hypocritical with his now wife Alina Johnston. Steven expected Alina to strictly follow all the rules of the Mormon Church, although he did not do this himself.
After Steven and Alina both moved to Turkey to be together, the former decided it was the perfect time to propose. Steven took Alina on a boat ride, but this is where the romance stopped. Alina held back laughter as Steven struggled to sing a song he had written to ask her to marry him. Steven could not sing at all, and even Alina knew it was bad! She did end up still saying yes though.
TELL US – WHICH 90 DAY FIANCÉ PROPOSAL DO YOU THINK WAS THE MOST MEMORABLE?
The Bachelor and The Bachelorette Nation have seen some pretty crazy seasons throughout the years. While many seasons have had traditional endings, others have wrapped up in more unconventional ways. These five Bachelor and Bachelorette seasons had completely unprecedented finales, that left us truly shook.
Joey Graziadei got his fairy tale ending when he got engaged to Kelsey Anderson, although the journey there was interesting. After her final date with Joey, runner-up Daisy Kent had a gut feeling that she wouldn’t be his final choice.
Daisy then decided to do something that had never been done in Bachelor history before. She went to visit Kelsey and told her that she had doubts about where she stood with Joey. In every other season, the leads have stayed strictly separate after the fantasy suite week rose ceremony.
In an unprecedented moment, Daisy and Kelsey rode to the proposal together. Daisy went to speak with Joey first, where she told him that she knew he wasn’t choosing her. After an emotional goodbye with Daisy, Joey got down on one knee and proposed to Kelsey. Joey’s season ultimately had a happy ending, while also making Bachelor Nation history.
Gabby & Rachel’s love stories had sad endings
Rachel Recchia and Gabby Windey’s Bachelorette season had a ton of firsts. Season 19 was the first time that two leads ever shared an entire season, which proved to be a challenge. At the start of the season, Rachel and Gabby struggled to form relationships as some of the men were not sure who they wanted to pursue. Eventually, they came to the decision to split the men into two groups, so that there wouldn’t be any overlap.
At the end of the season, Rachel got engaged to Tino Franco. After receiving Rachel’s first impression rose, Tino had been a front-runner all season. Unfortunately, after the shoe began airing, Rachel learned that Tino had cheated on her and kissed another girl. During After The Final Rose, Rachel announced that she and Tino had since parted ways.
Gabby, on the other hand, got engaged to Erich Schwer during the finale. While they were still together during After The Final Rose, they announced their split a few months later. While Rachel and Gabby may not have found love on The Bachelorette, they certainly found everlasting friendship!
Clayton Echard’s season had a shocking conclusion
Clayton Echard went down as a villain in Bachelor history for how he handled things with his final three women. During fantasy suite week, Clayton sent Susie Evans home after she expressed concerns about him being intimate with other women. Susie admitted that it would be hard for her to move forward if Clayton had slept with someone else, which he had.
At the “rose ceremony from hell”, Clayton came clean to Rachel and Gabby about sleeping with both of them. He also proclaimed that he was in love with both of them and told them that Susie had gone home. After a long night, both Rachel and Gabby eventually accepted roses from Clayton. However, the next day he decided to break up with both of them as he realized Susie was who he wanted.
While Susie did agree to give Clayton another chance, she later broke up with him again before he could propose. Both Clayton and Susie left the season single, although this did not last long. At After The Final Rose, Clayton and Susie announced that they had rekindled and were now dating. As of today, however, Clayton and Susie have broken up. Clayton’s season was all over the place, but no one saw this ending coming.
Peter Weber’s ending was a wildcard
Peter Weber had another shocking ending to his Bachelor journey, which no one could’ve predicted. Throughout the season, Peter formed strong relationships with both Madison Prewett and Hannah Ann Sluss. After struggling with the fact that Peter had been intimate with other women, however, Madison broke up with him.
At this point, Hannah Ann was the only woman left. Peter proposed to her, and the two got engaged. During After The Final Rose, however, it was revealed that Peter had ended things with her shortly afterward. Peter still had feelings for Madison and wanted to see if she would give him a second chance.
While Peter and Madison did briefly reunite and have a relationship, it didn’t last long. The day following After The Final Rose, Peter and Madison announced that they were going their separate ways. This was a huge shock, as it came less than 24 hours after their first public appearance as a couple.
TELL US – WHICH BACHELOR NATION FINALE SURPRISED YOU THE MOST?
Thanks to Bravo’s The Daily Dish, a teaser for the new episode showed the reality stars discussing their child’s development. When Jax asked Brittany if she had any “concerns” to discuss with Cruz’s therapist, Miss Dory, she said her focus was helping her child succeed.
“I just want to make sure that we’re giving him all the right tools and everything that he needs,” she said. In her confessional, Brittany told producers that Cruz seemed to “regress one day” after “crawling, walking [and] sitting up.” After some time, they decided speech therapy would ensure Cruz “has all the help that he needs.”
Brittany and Jax are co-parenting amid their current marital woes…
Although Brittany and Jax seem to be in a decent space during the current episodes of The Valley, we know things are headed downhill soon enough.
The former Vanderpump Rules stars announced their marital struggles on an episode of their podcast When Reality Hits. Brittany explained that she moved out of their home in the valley and into an Airbnb for her mental health and her child’s well-being before asking listeners to “pray for us.”
Since moving out, Brittany revealed that she and Jax have been co-parenting, which has been better than expected.
“We’re doing a really good job going back and forth,” she revealed. “And I’ll also take [Cruz] to the house and play, and we’ll swim one day or have him play on his play set, and we’ll do different things.”
“Jax will take him to Sky Zone, or he’ll take him to the park one day. But that’s the most important thing. So, I think it’s honestly been better because we aren’t fighting in front of him. And for me, I think that’s what is most important right now. Because that’s why I had to get him out of that situation in the first place.”
Being the child of a reality star would be hard for anyone. But given the press storm around the family over the last year, the likes of Farrah Brittany, Alexia Umansky, and Sophia Umansky have had it especially rough.
Still, the difficulty in their reality journey hasn’t kept them silent. The daughters have been all too open and honest about what it was like to have cameras around them so constantly – not just as children but even now into their adulthood.
Farrah says the Umansky family is “jaded” about reality TV
Sophia, Alexia, and Farrah all recently sat down with The Los Angeles Times to discuss life with reality TV. Of her choice to appear on BBH, Alexia said, “I was really nervous in the beginning. I remember calling my dad and being like, ‘I don’t know anything. You should not put me on television for real estate. I don’t know anything.’ And he’s like, ‘That’s the best part. That’s so real.’ And when he said that, I was just ‘OK, I guess that’s what we’re in for.’”
Sophia spoke about what it was like to have strangers think they know her and her family. “I still think it’s so surreal when I see someone and they think they know me. When the cameras are there, I don’t feel like they’re there. So then, thinking back, these people [viewers] actually saw what happened – like, I’m not the only one watching this; it’s not just me and my close friends watching. It’s not anything I think I’ll ever get used to, honestly.”
Similarly, Farrah spoke about the second nature of appearing on reality TV. “I think we’re maybe a little jaded because, like Sophia said, we don’t really feel like the cameras are there sometimes. It’s just natural that we know that, yes, this is what we signed up for … I think we were fine to share what we did. I think we were very honest and open … We’re used to this, and it just feels kind of par for the course, in a way.”
Buying Beverly Hills is streaming on Netflix while Real Housewives of Beverly Hills is streaming on Peacock.
TELL US – WHAT DO YOU THINK OF SOPHIA, ALEXIA, AND FARRAH’S LIVES WITH REALITY TV?
The two were arguing over their shared history with their pets. Ariana said the pets were solely hers while Tom disagreed. When Ariana pointed out that she’d paid the adoption fees, Tom joked, “It was the one bill that Ariana paid.” Mm. Nice. Very classy.
Ariana was understandably upset and asked Tom to get out of her personal space. Upon reflection, Ariana had some broader sentiments about the whole matter.
Ariana believes Tom wants her long-gone
During the April 2 VPR After Show, Ariana said that Tom “would love for everyone in the world to think that I am the big bad wolf, and he’s just like, ‘Poor Little Red Riding Hood, had to put up with her for so long.’ Like, I don’t do sh*t.”
She continued, “I just, you know, in the 9 months since we broke up managed to write a book, get third place on Dancing with the Stars, get my ass on Broadway. You know, like, yeah, I don’t do sh*t. Just did all that.” Okay, self-aggrandizing of the response aside, Ariana was riled up due to what happened at beach day.
She felt her costars were trying to ‘shove Tom down her throat,’ offering him way more sympathy than he deserved after having shown so little remorse for all of his actions. On the After Show, Ariana continued, “He would love for me to be run away, out of this group, and out of this town, and out of him having to answer for his own actions. He would love that.”
Or, to put it another way, it sure would be convenient for Tom if everyone, including VPR stars, producers, and editors, started trying to paint Ariana as the worst person between her and Tom. Hm. Something to think about.
Vanderpump Rules Season 11 continues Tuesdays at 8/7c on Bravo.
TELL US – WHAT DO YOU THINK OF ARIANA’S ASSERTIONS? WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THE GROUP’S BEACH DAY?
Wow. Shannon Beador’s ex-boyfriend, John Janssen, is suing her for $75,000. That’s the amount he says she owes him. Seriously? Does he need the money to buy an engagement ring for Alexis Bellino?
“I offered to pay John the exact amount that he wanted,” Shannon said on SiriusXM’s Jeff Lewis Live on April 1. “He turned the deal down because he didn’t want to sign a mutual non-disparagement agreement, and that’s standard in most settlements. That’s where you say you’re not gonna talk badly about someone.”
Now Shannon’s legal counsel feels the best thing to do is to just let the case play out at trial. “It’s frustrating because now my hands are tied,” she says. “What am I supposed to do? Say, ‘Here’s all this money that you claim that I owe you, and go ahead. Say whatever you want about me.’ No. My attorney said I can’t let you do that, so I have to now go to trial.”
$75k for plastic surgery
Photo by: Astrid Stawiarz/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images
On March 20, John sued Shannon for breach of oral contract and promissory fraud. The Real Housewives of Orange County star’s ex claims she borrowed $75,000 from him for two surgeries and never repaid it.
Court documents allege that Shannon asked John to loan her the money in 2022. He initially gave her $40,000 for a plastic surgery procedure, followed by an additional $35,000. John is claiming that Shannon never paid him back, even though he says she verbally agreed to pay him back with interest.
But Shannon claims that during their three-year relationship, she also gave John money.
“There were two times where he gave me money,” the mom of three said. “[But] there were many times where I paid for things … So you wanna go tit for tat? You want me to show the tens of thousands of dollars that I spent?”
“Let me be clear,” Shannon continued. “For the second half of our relationship, John paid for stuff. But at the beginning, I did. So when we traveled … John only bought me one airline ticket in our entire relationship. I always [paid] … I took him to New York four times in four months in our first six months of dating.”
Shannon says they never had any written agreement to pay each other back. It was just money they spent in a dating relationship.
“At the very beginning of the relationship, he said, ‘You’re my future. You’re my person,’” the Real for Real creator said. “That’s what he said, and … I felt this comfort with him right away. I thought we were going to be together forever.”
In January 2023, Shannon sadly announced her breakup with John, insisting they were still friends. But the following November, John and Alexis met at the Quiet Woman Restaurant in Corona Del Mar. They’ve been inseparable ever since.
Now Alexis is returning to RHOC for Season 18 (she was previously on Seasons 5 through 8), alongside Shannon. That won’t be awkward at all.
While she’s sad that John’s moved on with someone else, Shannon has no idea why he decided to sue her. “I really don’t know,” she says. “Is he spending a lot of money? I don’t know what he does for work anymore.”
“I want to move forward with my life [and] don’t want to think about John Janssen,” she adds.” “I’m in a really good place mentally and I want to keep going forward, not backward.”
When Us Weekly asked for comment from John’s attorney, his representation denied that John ever paid Shannon the $75,000 as a gift.
“[Ms.] Beador’s defense that Mr. Janssen paid her the $75,000 as a ‘gift’ is completely meritless, which their emails and text messages will show,” John’s attorneys said in a March 22 statement. “Mr. Janssen is saddened that Ms. Beador’s unwillingness to repay the loans made it necessary to file this lawsuit.”
But according to Shannon, she did offer to repay the $75,000. John just didn’t want to sign an NDA in exchange for the payoff. So he’d rather reserve the right to badmouth his ex? Nice guy. It should be interesting to see what the judge has to say.
Regardless of the personal opinions of Lisa Vanderpump, it could be agreed upon that she would give stellar business advice. The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum, who starred on the show for nine seasons, owns multiple restaurants in some of the trendiest locations in the USA.
The most recognizable is SUR Restaurant and Lounge in West Hollywood. It served as the backdrop for eleven seasons of the hit reality TV show Vanderpump Rules, in which Lisa is featured.
There’s also the recently opened Wolf by Vanderpump in Lake Tahoe, and soon to be opened, Pinky’s by Vanderpump. It will debut this summer in the Flamingo Hotel on the Las Vegas strip. And in honor of this new project, Lisa gave some much-needed business advice to fledgling restauranteurs.
Lisa shared what she thinks a successful restauranteur needs
Being a reality TV star certainly got Lisa and her businesses a lot of exposure. A fan base looking to dine out at her venues built since she joined RHOBH in 2010. But for the average restauranteur starting up, it’s not that easy. And Lisa advised loving what you do and growing a “thick skin.”
“The competition is so tough out there, it’s not for the faint-hearted,” she exclusively told The Entrepreneur. “You have to develop a thick skin. That’s very, very important.”
“I think that if you’re really doing something that you love, your passion for that is your motivation,” Lisa added.
The Vanderpump Rules matriarch likened the passion needed to play tennis.
“If you don’t like doing something, it’s like playing tennis. If you like playing tennis, you’re going to run for that ball just because you want to hit it,” Lisa explained. “But if you’re not motivated, you’re not excited by what you’re doing, then you don’t put the energy into it. Whereas the things I do, I’m excited. I don’t care how long I work, I don’t care how hard I work. I will get it done.”
Ultimately, it’s all about staying “focused,” Lisa stated. Certainly, willing investors also help.
“If things go wrong, you learn from it. There’s the good, the bad, and the ugly, and everything really, isn’t there,” she concluded. “Sometimes it’s overwhelming … If you really get going and get on it, you’ll be surprised by how much you can accomplish.”
Catch Vanderpump Rules Tuesdays at 8/7c on Bravo.
TELL US – WOULD YOU TRUST LISA’S BUSINESS ADVICE? WHAT IS YOUR REACTION TO HER COMMENTS? WHAT DO DO YOU THINK ABOUT LISA’S RESTAURANTS?
The pressure is being turned up on Deal or No Deal Island. The contestants were brought to the mysterious Banker’s tropical island. Right now the remaining eight guests are fighting to remain in the game. The last player standing will face the Banker and possibly take home up to $200 million.
Last time, contestants Amy McCoy and Aron Barbell obtained the Banker’s Bonus case during the excursion. But they ended up being the bottom two. Stephanie Mitchell and Boston Rob Mariano won immunity. So, Amy decided that she wanted to face the Banker. At The Temple, host Joe Manganiello had Aron open the case. Inside, it read that there would be no elimination.
The Banker’s assistants, Kamari Love and Ben Crofchick, joined Reality Tea writer Kim Stempel to discuss what it is like working on the show and what surprised them the most about the game.
Kamari and Ben share what they first thought about Deal or No Deal Island
Photo by: Monty Brinton/NBC
Kim Stempel: So, what I thought I would do is throw out these questions to both of you. What did you think when you first heard about the premise of Deal or No Deal Island?
Kamari Love: I just immediately thought it was the greatest idea because I feel like we took a lot of like the most popular game shows and combined them into one. You know, I feel like there’s a little bit of Deal or No Deal, a little bit of Survivor and we just threw them all together and made one mega-show which was like the coolest thing ever. So, very exciting.
Ben Crofchick: Well said. Well said. (laughs)
Kamari Love: That’s your answer? (laughs)
Ben Crofchick: Yeah.
Which excursions were the most frightening?
Photo by: Monty Brinton/NBC
Kim Stempel: Have there been any excursions that the players have gone on that you thought looked absolutely terrifying?
Ben Crofchick: There was a snake box that … it just aired last night if you watched, and that for me, I’m not a big fan of snakes. I know a lot of us aren’t. So, any idea of sticking my hand in a box that can potentially bite me is a little … a little fearful for me. So, that’s one I would have stayed … stayed far away from probably. I think Kamari would probably agree.
Kamari Love: Oh, yeah. That’s why we weren’t the contestants.
Ben Crofchick: Gotta stay back on that one!
Kamari Love: Yes!
Kim Stempel: I was terrified on my couch. I was like, ‘No way!’
Kamari Love: Right! They were brave!
Kim Stempel: Are there any excursions that you wish you could have participated in?
Kamari Love: I feel like the jet ski. I definitely wanted to do the jet ski when we were participating or helping with the challenge. When they took off I was a little [like] ‘Dang, take me with you.’ But it was super fun to watch them, too.
Ben Crofchick: I would have … I would have done the swing. The tree swing. I would have enjoyed that one. Like, heights aren’t my thing really either, but I would have tested myself on that one. That would have been fun.
Kamari Love: That’s a good one.
Kim Stempel: These challenges were amazing.
Ben Crofchick: Oh, yeah. They created them well, for sure.
Ben and Kamari dish on what really happens in The Temple
Photo by: Monty Brinton/NBC
Kim Stempel: What is the energy like when you’re shooting scenes in The Temple?
Kamari Love: Oh, man. It’s intense because everything’s up in the air, and you know Ben and I don’t know anything until it happens just like the contestants. So, it’s all just as much a surprise to us as it is to them.
So, you know, and Ben will agree, we have genuine reactions. You know, when people get voted off, we’re just as sad. You know, so we’re very much in the emotions with them.
Ben Crofchick: And it’s … it’s true, because you know us opening the case, we’re the first one to see the dollar amount as well. So, you know, we [are] being part of the show. We’re also fans of the show, so having to open a case that might be heartbreaking to someone is never … is never the easiest thing.
Kamari Love: No. It’s not.
Ben Crofchick: And, just so you know, we also have bats flying around, there’s howling monkeys in the trees. So, I mean, the vibes are everywhere and all over the place.
Kamari Love: Yes! We’re trying to be professional with the bugs crawling on our legs. We’re like, ‘Don’t move. Don’t move. Be cool.’
Ben Crofchick: A lot of emotions.
How Kamari and Ben feel about the contestants
Photo by: Monty Brinton/NBC
Kim Stempel: What would surprise viewers the most about the show?
Ben Crofchick: I would say, for it being, you know, Season 1, how smoothly everything went. I mean, we had such a smooth running for a Season 1 show. Yeah. And on an island that’s kind of unforgiving, and it’s new to everybody. I think for it to be kind of as flawless as it was, I don’t know. I think it might be unheard of how perfect it went. So, we were all very happy about that.
Kamari Love: Yes. Absolutely. And I love the mix of contestants that they chose, too. It was just such great different energies and different dynamics that came together. You really fall in love with all the contestants and I thought that they did a great job at that.
Kim Stempel: They did. They picked someone that everyone can root for.
Kamari Love: Yes. Absolutely.
Ben Crofchick: For sure.
Kim Stempel: Did you get to have a lot of interaction with the contestants?
Kamari Love: We did not, actually. We barely got to interact with them. Which was tough but also, you know. made it exciting for us as well. So, we got to get really cool with them kind of post [the] show but that was tough.
Ben Crofchick: Definitely.
What were Ben and Kamari’s favorite part of being on the show?
Photo by: Patrick Ecclesine/NBC
Kim Stempel: And what was your favorite part of being on Deal or No Deal Island?
Ben Crofchick: I mean, I think I can speak for me and Kamari on the fact that it’s just such a new show, and me and Kamari got to kind of be the first briefcase models to adapt to this brand-new show and be the first to open these brand new cases on a brand new island. That’s something we can take with us forever. So, I mean for me, it’s definitely … it’s been an honor.
Kamari Love: Absolutely. And we’re both from the South, so it was cool to bring some Southern roots to a new show [and] to a different island.
Ben Crofchick: That’s true. That’s true.
Kamari Love: Mixing it up. Keeping it sassy.
How Ben and Kamari felt about the original Deal or No Deal
Photo by: Monty Brinton/NBC
Kim Stempel: Ben, what did it feel like to be the first male model who is a series regular?
Ben Crofchick: I mean for me, growing up watching the show and knowing it’s always been just, you know, female briefcase models, when I started the modeling journey, I didn’t really think I’d be the first to do anything. You know, I just thought I’d kind of go with the flow of the modeling industry.
So, to be the first briefcase model on a show as iconic as Deal or No Deal [Island], it’s really just been an honor, and to do it with a team like NBC, you know, I’m thankful for it because they’ve just been so amazing and professional. So, I love it. I love that I get to do it, and I’m hoping for many more seasons to come.
Kim Stempel: I know. Fingers crossed! And Kamari, were you a fan of [the original] Deal or No Deal?
Kamari Love: Yes. Absolutely. I watched it back in junior high and high school, so when they had all the briefcase models, and Howie [Mandel] was doing his thing.
So, it was just the coolest thing ever when this opportunity came across, and, you know, to be able to … book it, is just such an honor because coming behind Claudia Jordan and Meghan Markle as the people who really created a career and like really paved the way for the future models is just huge. I honestly feel so honored and so grateful to have the opportunity.
What are Kamari and Ben’s future goals?
Photo by: Monty Brinton/NBC
Kim Stempel: Do you have any acting experience or aspirations?
Kamari Love: Yes. Absolutely. I plan on hopefully winning Oscars, truthfully. Acting is my main thing, but what I loved about Deal or No Deal [Island] was this was an opportunity for me to not be in character and for me to just be myself and present myself, which was such a plot twist for me. I never considered, you know, having an opportunity like this. So, it was truly a really great, random thing to have happen for me and [I’m] just running with it. I’m super excited to see where it goes from here.
Kim Stempel: What about you, Ben?
Ben Crofchick: I’ve had a few little acting moments throughout my career that’s kind of piqued my interest with it. So, being able to hop on Deal or No Deal [Island], same thing. Show some character and show my personality on camera. It’s definitely sparked more of an interest so it’s something I’m definitely looking forward to pursuing you know from here on out.
And Kamari’s definitely going to win an Oscar one day.
Kim Stempel: Yay!
Kamari Love: Thanks, Ben. Received!
This interview was edited for conciseness and clarity.
