And the First-Ever Golden Bachelorette Is…

ABC just revealed the first-ever lead of The Golden Bachelorette, and I totally saw this coming.

According to Deadline, Joan Vassos will lead the inaugural season of The Golden Bachelorette. ABC announced the exciting news today during a presentation at Disney’s Upfront.

Disney/John Fleenor

If you recall, Vassos originally appeared on Gerry Turner’s season of The Golden Bachelor. Although she was an immediate frontrunner, she voluntarily left the show due to personal reasons.

The casting announcement shouldn’t come as a huge surprise, since ABC previously revealed that pre-production for The Golden Bachelorette was underway. Fans hoped that there would be a spin-off following The Golden Bachelor, but it took some time for the network to confirm that it would actually happen.

ABC/Craig Sjodin

At the time, host Jesse Palmer revealed that he was hopeful about the possibility of The Golden Bachelorette. “As the show goes on, you learn more about these women, what they’ve been through,” he told TODAY. “I think there’s going to be a swell in support of there being a Golden Bachelorette. That’s my personal opinion.”

“I can’t speak on behalf of executives or anybody else, obviously,” Palmer continued. “I’m sure everyone’s waiting to see how this one goes first. But I know there are thousands of women across America deserving of that.”

ABC hasn’t announced an official premiere date for The Golden Bachelorette, but we do know that episodes will air this fall on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT. *Marks calendar*

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