Here’s the Deal With ‘Bachelor in Paradise’ Season 8, Because It’s (*Finally*) Almost Here

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Rejoice, Bachelor Nation, for Bachelor in Paradise has officially been renewed for another season of pure debauchery on a Mexico beach after all those rumors and speculation about it getting canceled. As a begrudging card-carrying member of this godforsaken franchise, I am admittedly thrilled to see the show staying in the rotation—it just feels like the best return on all of my emotional and mental investment from watching The Bachelor and The Bachelorette for Two! Hours! Every! Damn! Week! I’ll take it, ABC. Also, seeing who tiptoes off to the Boom Boom Room in the wee hours >>>> watching forever-long, snoozy episodes of hometown dates. Am I? The drama???

So all that to say, here’s everything we know so far about Bachelor in Paradise season 8.

The premiere date is in September this season

Typically, Bachelor in Paradise premieres sometime during August, but because season 19 of The Bachelorette premiered on July 11, fans initially worried that this summer would be Paradise-less.

While ABC technically could have premiered Bachelor in Paradise while The Bachelorette was still airing, that would have risked spoiling the end of Gabby’s and Rachel’s respective journeys because BiP traditionally pulls heavily from the casts of the most recent seasons of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. Or it would have limited which of Gabby and Rachel’s guys were eligible to hit the beach. Either way, it would have been a whole thing.

In the end, ABC decided to resolve this dilemma by just pushing the premiere of Paradise back to September 27.

Bachelor Nation faves could be part of the cast

In its initial press release about BiP season 8, ABC said, “Breakout fan favorites from The Bachelor franchise are back and ready for a second (or third) chance at finding love. They may have left their respective seasons brokenhearted, but now they have the opportunity to travel to a romantic paradise in hopes of turning a potential summer fling into the real thing.” And, you know, yeah. That’s pretty much how Paradise always works, right?

You can check out a complete guide to the Bachelor in Paradise season 8 cast (the first wave of them, at least) here, but some highlights include Shanae Ankey (aka the villain from Clayton’s season), Michelle Young’s runner-up Brandon Jones, and Rachel-to-Gabby team switcher Logan Palmer.

The hosting slot is officially filled

Last season of BiP was the first without longtime host Chris Harrison, and instead, the show featured a rotation of celebrity hosts including David Spade, Titus Burgess, Lance Bass, and Lil John. Beloved Paradise bartender (and former Bachelorette contestant) Wells Adams even took the position for a few episodes.

We now know that Bachelor and Bachelorette host Jesse Palmer is officially steering the glorious shipwreck that is Bachelor in Paradise. He called in for an interview for the Here for the Right Reasons podcast to promote Gabby and Rachel’s season of The Bachelorette literally from Mexico, where he was actively filming the “insane” new season of BiP.

“It’s insane down here. It’s absolutely crazy. There’s all these people. It is just so much chaos, so much drama, and, yes, never-before-seen things taking place in Paradise,” he teased. “I’ve been watching this show for years, huge fan of it. And we’ve been switching things up. We’ve been changing things up. It’s hard to keep track of it all, to be honest.”

Wells Adams is returning as the official Paradise bartender

Fan favorite Wells will be back on the beach and back behind the bar this season—and apparently plying everyone on-set with delicious drinks.

“[He’s] amazing. I wish I could be back there with him more. He makes a mean margarita, it’s delicious. I get jealous,” Jesse told Us Weekly. “The cast, I mean, they get to enjoy the fruits of his labor. He’s been phenomenal. It’s been so much fun working with him. He’s like the mayor down there.”

That’s all we know for now, but check back here for updates as more info about the show is released.

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