The Bachelor franchise has done some wild things in its 23 years on the air, but I can’t say I ever saw this partnership coming. The ABC reality dating show and HGTV are teaming up for a new competition show called Bachelor Mansion Takeover. This is surprising given so many recent HGTV cancellations, but I am pumped nonetheless to see 12 alumni compete as they remodel the famed Villa de la Vina. One question keeps nagging at me though — are these reality stars qualified to do this?
First things first, who are the dozen contestants who will compete for $100,000 on Bachelor Mansion Takeover? There’s a nice mix of old and new, youngs and Goldens, a couple of former leads and more than one villain thrown in the mix. Below is the cast, as well as whose Bachelor season they originally appeared on:
- Dean Bell (né Unglert, Rachel Lindsay)
- Jill Chin (Clayton Echard)
- Noah Erb (Tayshia Adams)
- Allyshia Gupta (Grant Ellis)
- Tammy Ly (Peter Weber)
- Sandra Mason (Gerry Turner)
- Sam McKinney (Jenn Tran)
- Brendan Morais (Tayshia Adams)
- Courtney Robertson Preciado (Ben Flajnik)
- Jeremy Simon (Jenn Tran)
- Christopher Stallworth (Joan Vassos)
- Joan Vassos (Gerry Turner)
Who better to remodel the mansion than those who know what it’s like to live there? But I had to look into whether or not they are actually qualified for the job ahead. The short answer seems to be yes, according to their Bachelor bios, but I’d assume people like Christopher and Sam — who are contractors — are going to have a leg up on others like Noah (a travel nurse) and Courtney (a model).
Who knows, though? Maybe we’ll learn that all of the contestants have had their hands in renovation in some way. Others with relevant experience include Allyshia, interior designer; Tammy, house flipper; Brendan, roofer; and Jill, architectural historian, which I can only hope means she’ll bring some interesting ideas to the table.
Those with possibly less helpful jobs include Dean, startup recruiter; Sandra, retired executive assistant; Joan, private school administrator; and Jeremy, real estate investor (TBD determined if his investing knowledge will help him here).
Again, these were their professions, but it’s reasonable to assume many of them have changed jobs or become influencers since their time in The Bachelor franchise. It does seem, though, like HGTV took their backgrounds into consideration over other factors when casting.
For instance, they didn’t cast the members of Bachelor Nation who are involved with these 12 contestants, like Abigail Heringer, who is married to Noah, or Chock Chapple, who is engaged to Joan.
The HGTV casting team didn’t appear to be going for drama either. They easily could have cast someone’s ex (I’m sure Sam would not be happy to see Jenn Tran again after getting “dragged for filth” on their season), and Allyshia would certainly have bumped heads with Kat Izzo after their rivalry on Bachelor in Paradise Season 10, which can be streamed with a Hulu subscription.
I’m excited to see what the TV personalities bring to the home renovation space. Jesse Palmer will, not surprisingly, be there along the way, as he is the host of Bachelor Mansion Takeover, and Tayshia Adams and Tyler Cameron will serve as the judges.
Honestly, the only bad thing I have to say about the upcoming Bachelor/HGTV relationship is that it won’t be finished in time for the 2025 TV schedule. Bachelor Mansion Takeover is set to air in 2026. In the meantime, you can tune into The Golden Bachelor, with episodes airing at 8 p.m. ET Wednesdays on ABC.