The Golden Bachelorette: Joan Vassos Is ABC’s Pick to Lead the Hit Franchise’s Inaugural Season

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Ever since ABC announced The Golden Bachelorette was officially a go, fans have been waiting forever (well, more like three months) to find out who the lucky lady would be, and now we know: Joan Vassos, the 60-year-old school administrator from Rockland, Maryland.

Joan was a fan favorite and front-runner on The Golden Bachelor from the start, when she and Gerry Turner had a heart-warming one-on-one date (like Gerry, Joan lost a spouse to death). It seemed she and Gerry had what it took to go the distance, but the morning after their date, she made the important—and right—decision to leave the show to care for her daughter, who was struggling with postpartum depression.

Gerry was understanding—and devastated. But to make matters even more surprising, Joan told me at the Women Tell All taping in October 2023 that she was actually scheduled to return to the show and even had a plane ticket. “[The show] asked me if I wanted to come back, to which I said, ‘I’m dying to come back. I have no closure,’” Vassos said.

At the time the mom of four and grandmother of two thought her daughter was in a much better place, so she had ABC schedule a flight to LA. “I had my bags packed and I was going to leave the next morning, [but] the thought of me leaving was just too much [for my daughter], so I didn»t get to go back. I wanted to go back so badly. I tried, but it just was not in the cards. I was heartbroken.”

A golden goddess, indeed.

Ricky Middlesworth/ABC

Well, now she’ll get her chance when the new season kicks off this fall. (An exact premiere date is still to come, but look for sometime in September.) The even better news is that because of The Golden Bachelor’s success (divorce aside), the inaugural season of The Golden Bachelorette will expand to 90 minutes each week as opposed to just one hour. The series is also moving from Thursday nights to Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT, 7 p.m. CT on ABC, followed by new episodes of Abbott Elementary. It will stream the next day on Hulu.

More than 43 million viewers tuned in to the debut of The Golden Bachelor across platforms last fall, all but guaranteeing The Golden Bachelorette would be greenlit. Back in February, Craig Erwich, president of Disney Television Group, told Glamour exclusively that casting was underway for The Golden Bachelorette. “We’re pretty exhaustive in how and where we look for people. You’re trying to assemble the cast with an eye toward, not just is that person right for the show, but what’s the chemistry and what’s the makeup?”

Now that Joan is in place as the lead, expect more eligible men to sign up, as filming will most likely begin in the next couple months. (By the way, will Kelsey Anderson’s dad, Steve, be a contestant this season? When I spoke with the winner of The Bachelor’s 28th season following her engagement to Joey Graziadei in March, she said, “I’ve been trying to talk him into it. I think that he’s open to the concept of it, especially seeing how happy Joey and I are together and how we would’ve never met otherwise. Honestly, it would be a really great push for my dad to get him back into that space.”)

In fact, when we asked Joey about who he’d like to see as The Golden Bachelorette, he said the following: “Leslie is amazing. I think everyone has fully fallen in love with Susan too. Her personality is just everything. And let’s also say…I’ll throw a wild card in there like Joan, because I think that she has a really beautiful story too.”

That she does. Joan enthusiastically threw herself back into the dating world after her husband of 32 years passed away from pancreatic cancer. And when she’s not working as a school administrator, she loves spending time with her family on the beach, listening to Elton John, hanging with her dog, and cooking a delicious meal (burgers are her favorite). She’s also become well-adjusted to life post–Golden Bachelor, becoming an influencer as of late for various brands and companies. That will likely change, of course, as her journey gets underway.

But first Joan will appear in an upcoming edition of Celebrity Family Feud with her Golden Bachelor family and no doubt be making the rounds on Good Morning America and the like. We’ll update this post as soon as more information becomes available. And in the meantime, check out the key art from Joan’s new season. Gorgeous.

Ramona Rosales/ABC

Original post from February 10, 2024: It’s confirmed! As expected, ABC and Warner Bros. Television have officially ordered the inaugural season of The Golden Bachelorette. In what was probably the worst-kept secret—especially given the massive success of The Golden Bachelor (followed by The Golden Wedding)—Craig Erwich, president of Disney Television Group, made the announcement during ABC’s executive panel at the 2024 Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour.

Of course, the bigger question is who is going to be stepping into the stilettos for the lead role. The not-so-great news is that we don’t know yet (and ABC may not know either). The better news is that because the producers have so many great options (see below for the frontrunners), they’re taking their time to make a decision. (The official word right now is that “additional details surrounding the series, including cast details, will be announced at a later date.”)

“It’s thrilling,” Erwich told Glamour after the news was announced. “I’ve been doing this for a really long time, but when you have a show that…in your bones has connected with the audience, and you just know that fairy dust has been sprinkled on it, it’s unlike anything else. So to come back and be able to do another one is thrilling.”

At its core The Golden Bachelor—and now Bachelorette—is about inspiration and empowerment, and Erwich says that won’t change with this iteration. “The producers are very clear that the tone of the show is about heart, hope, and humor, and those essential ingredients will be in this one. That’s ultimately what makes the show successful,” he says.

As for the current state of the casting process for the new season, Erwich acknowledges they have an amazing pool of women to choose from, but it’s going to be hard. “It’s a quality problem to have…because that means the first one worked,” he says. “It’s fun. It’s our job, and it is fun to think about all the different permutations and what different shows look like with different contestants. We’re not there yet, but it’s an exciting process.”

While Erwich isn’t able to say much about the new season, he says you can rule out having two Golden Bachelorettes in the lead role, as we saw with Gabby Windey and Rachel Recchia in The Bachelorette season 19. “That’s probably not where we’ll go this time,” he tells Glamour. “[Since] we’re in the early days of the Golden Bachelor franchise, sticking to one is probably the best thing.”

Casting the men for The Golden Bachelorette is underway, and Erwich says the team is “pretty exhaustive in how and where we look for people. You’re trying to assemble the cast with an eye toward, not just is that person right for the show, but what’s the chemistry and what’s the makeup? And because the show is about finding love, is this person a good suitor for who the bachelorette is going to be?”

Currently, Joey Graziadei’s season of The Bachelor is airing through March (in last Monday’s episode, the ASKN ladies from The Golden Bachelor—April, Susan, Kathy, and Nancy—made an appearance at one of Joey’s group dates). The Bachelorette, which has also been renewed, will begin filming after that for a summer premiere. ABC has confirmed that The Golden Bachelorette will air this fall and most likely follow the same timeline (late September through end of November) as The Golden Bachelor did.

Frankly, if it were up to me, we’d also get a Golden Bachelor Villa, in which our favorite ladies live together à la The Golden Girls to date, eat, and do synchronized swimming. (That’s right, ABC, I have not forgotten about that pure-as-the-driven-snow moment we got last season in the Bachelor mansion swimming pool.)

As for the possibility of a Golden Villa–type show, Erwich isn’t ready to make any announcements but is hopeful for what’s to come with the franchise, noting that The Golden Bachelor has reminded everyone that you can find love at any age. “There’s a particular joy in watching…let’s call it an older generation—although I don’t consider these people old—go through very similar things that people of all ages go through, but do it with a sense of gratitude and experience, that actually makes the process more interesting and even more joyful.”

With that, let’s discuss who might be the lead contender for The Golden Bachelorette. Whoever it is, Erwich says all the ladies are forever part of the Disney family: “We’re always looking for ways to be in business with them.”

Susan Noles

James Clark/Getty Images

The wedding officiant, hairstylist, and meatball maestro is a fan favorite (she was also just on Good Morning America helping judge the best pizza, proving she’s clearly part of the ABC family). The divorcée is bold and hilarious, and has a heart of gold. Perfect casting if you ask me.

Kathy Swarts

Eric McCandless/Getty Images

Susan’s BFF, Kathy, gave us the best one-liners and moments in the inaugural season of The Golden Bachelor. From her “Zip it” exchange with Theresa to her ability to accurately break down every situation with humor and insight, Kathy would truly make for must-watch TV. Plus, after experiencing the unfathomable (she lost her husband to suicide), Swarts has been on an empowering mission to show you can find love and joy again.

Faith Martin