Why Having Two Bachelorettes Is Doomed To Fail Just Like Season 11

Having co-leads Kaitlyn Bristowe and Britt Nilsson on The Bachelorette season 11 wasn’t a particularly pleasant experience for any of the cast members involved, and repeating that formula with Gabby Windey and Rachel Recchia on The Bachelorette season 19 is certainly doomed to fail. When Gabby and Rachel were announced as co-leads of The Bachelorette, fans could breathe a sigh of relief that at least they wouldn’t have to battle it out for a single spot as the lead of the season.

In 2015, Kaitlyn and Britt came out of Chris Soules’ season of The Bachelor being cast as co-leads during The Bachelorette season 11 premiere. Alas, only one of them could move forward and lead the rest of the season. Thus, it was up to Kaitlyn and Britt to woo the men of season 11 as upon meeting them on night one. The contestants then voted for which woman they’d rather see as Bachelorette for the remainder of the show. This format is now being repeated for The Bachelorette season 19, but both Gabby and Rachel will thankfully be co-leads for the entire season.

Even though Gabby and Rachel won’t be pitted against each other in season 19 to battle for a single spot, the overall format of The Bachelorette series doesn’t lend itself to having two leads at the same time. Longtime viewers will remember how awkward it felt for Kaitlyn and Britt to stand in front of the mansion on night one as they waited for the men to choose who they’d like to talk to first. It was also cringe-worthy when one of them liked a guy who, in turn, seemed more interested in the other woman in the room. This dynamic created a lot of unnecessary tension between the Bachelorettes, and it was also added pressure for the men to either pick a side right away or flirt with the two women as they stood side by side.

One can argue that the entire point of the Bachelor Nation franchise is for single people to date multiple partners simultaneously, so this level of awkwardness should be expected. However, the entire point of being cast as the lead of a season is that you can finally call the shots for your own journey. By casting Gabby and Rachel as the next set of double Bachelorettes, the women will have to stay on competition mode with each other to connect with the men they like, even though this should be the season where one of them could just sit back, relax, and have contestants vying for her – and only her.

Hopefully, Gabby and Rachel have different tastes in men and are able to handle their co-leading duties without too much friction. With that said, these are two contestants who got to the final three on Clayton Echard’s season of The Bachelor, so it’s fair to say that they do, in a way, have the same type in men. Overall, though, casting two Bachelorettes was quite awkward back in season 11, and it’ll probably be awkward again in season 19.

The Bachelorette season 19 premieres Monday, July 11 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.

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Bernardo Sim
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Bernardo Sim writes about TV shows, queer culture, & Brazilian media. Born and raised in the Amazon, he now lives in South Florida. he/him

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