ABC has announced that former The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love bachelorette Ali Fedotowsky will serve as the star of the sixth edition of The Bachelorette, which will premiere Monday, May 24 at 9PM ET/PT.
ADVERTISEMENT
"I am so excited. I'm so thrilled and honored and grateful. I just can't believe it. I'm really grateful," Fedotowsky said when she was formally revealed as The Bachelorette's next star at the end of last night's The Bachelor: After the Final Rose special.
"I want to find someone and I want yo be in love and I want to get married and have kids -- all of that. This is my chance."
Fedotowsky was one of four remaining bachelorettes vying for The Bachelor star Jake Pavelka's heart when she decided to leave the show to avoid having to quit her job at Facebook, which she had only begun a few months before the show was taped last fall.
However she subsequently changed her mind and attempted to return to the show during the next episode, only to discover that Pavelka was unwilling to let her do so.
ADVERTISEMENT
Fedotowsky then voiced interest in starring in The Bachelorette during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
"That would be so nice. I would be so flattered," she told DeGeneres when the talk show host suggested the idea. "If they were to ask me, it'd be so great, I'd have to think about it."
The Bachelor host Chris Harrison subsequently stated that Fedotowsky "definitely has a shot" to be The Bachelorette's next star.
"When I found out -- or when I was even first approached -- I was kind of scared at first. I almost went right back to how I felt when I had to make the decision with Jake," Fedotowsky said during last night's special.
"I kept thinking to myself, 'Why am I feeling this way again?' I just realized I'm not going to let my fear dictate my life anymore. I just need to go for it."
ADVERTISEMENT
Fedotowsky also joked that she wants her The Bachelorette journey to begin with 50 suitors instead of the standard 25.
"I really want funny -- I want a funny, smart, kind of quirky guy," she explained. "But in general, I don't really need anything in particular. I'm not even looking for a particular type of guy, I'm looking for a feeling."
While Fedotowsky's The Bachelorette season hasn't even started filming yet and won't debut until May, she's already excited about how it will conclude.
"I'm looking forward to the end," she said. "I'm looking forward to that last day where I get to be with my man. The journey, I know it works."
About The Author: Christopher Rocchio