The Bachelor alum Brooklyn Willie has revealed why she wanted to join Bachelor in Paradise's Season 9 cast and what her expectations were going into filming.
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"So, you know, when I had the opportunity to go back in an environment where it's not normal and you're not comfortable... I just wanted to jump into that opportunity because, like I said, when I had those opportunities -- to be out of my comfort zone -- that's when the best things happened. So I wanted to put it all out there again."
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Brooklyn will be among the first 18 bachelors and bachelorettes who will be shown arriving on the beach in Paradise right away when the show premieres with a two-hour episode on Thursday, September 28 at 9PM ET/PT, immediately following the debut of The Golden Bachelor on ABC.
Brooklyn said she was able to be herself on The Bachelor, with no regrets, and so she "carried that energy into Paradise" full send.
Brooklyn said the first day of filming was "wild" and she "didn't even know what to expect."
Brooklyn elaborated, "I guess, yes, it was everything I expected because I didn't know. But it was a lot of fun... I think going into Paradise, initially, I was like, 'I want to end up engaged.'"
But The Bachelor 27 alum -- who got eliminated on Zach Shallcross' season before hometown dates -- said she allowed herself to play it by ear and not rush into a relationship on the beach in Mexico.
"I wanted to see how it goes. I didn't want to force anything that wasn't real," Brooklyn noted.
"I wanted to stay true to myself heading into Paradise, and then once I got there, you know, I could literally test the waters and see how it is. I feel like I just wanted to follow my heart and be true to myself at Paradise."
Following Zach's The Bachelor season, Brooklyn -- an Oklahoma native -- recalled dating "a little bit" but "not much" after she returned home to "the middle of nowhere" Texas, where she currently works as a real estate agent.
"I moved back home... and dating was a little different," Brooklyn said. "I wasn't really sure how to navigate [the dating world] because it's a lot different, dating after being on the show."
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Brooklyn admitted she "kind of tried" dating but didn't really take anything too seriously since she knew Paradise was around the corner.
"I was like, 'No, I'm just going to try to keep my distance so that I can be completely open to the idea and the experience,'" Brooklyn shared, adding how she had a lot of men in her DMs on Instagram earlier this year.
Brooklyn joked about how her DMs were "popping" and she found them a little overwhelming.
"I was like, 'That's enough,'" Brooklyn said with a laugh. "I think there was one from [The Bachelor franchise] but that was it... I didn't respond, so I'll be nice [and not expose him]."
Brooklyn, an outspoken bachelorette best remembered for her tough exterior but warm heart, said she was so thankful to have received a lot of support from fans given she had shared so much personal information on The Bachelor.
"It was really empowering to see all of the support," Brooklyn acknowledged. "I had a lot of positive DMs, but there's always a few crazy negative ones. For the most part, it was all good."
Brooklyn apparently went to the gym daily to prepare for Bachelor in Paradise, and her The Bachelor bestie, Charity Lawson -- who starred on The Bachelorette's 20th season -- had warned her friends about which guys were solid picks or trouble.
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Jesse added, "Who will find their soul mate? Who will leave in tears? And who will decide to get MARRIED in Paradise?!"
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)
Charity will be making a cameo appearance on Paradise as well as former The Bachelorette stars Katie Thurston and Hannah Brown. Rachel, who starred on The Bachelorette's nineteenth season, will also be looking for love in Paradise.
Charity recently played matchmaker for some of the Bachelor in Paradise cast during the September 7 episode of the "Off the Vine with Kaitlyn Bristowe" podcast.
And Charity and Dotun, who got engaged at the end of The Bachelorette's twentieth season, gushed about how they'll "absolutely" be watching Bachelor in Paradise when it returns.
"We definitely will be watching. We are so excited about it. Some of my actually closest girlfriends are on there, and [Dotun] best guy friends and my exes [are on there]," Charity said.
Charity -- who actually competed against many of the women on Zach's The Bachelor season, not just Brooklyn -- acknowledged that while it's "a weird dynamic," she thinks it's "going to be so funny" to watch the drama, love and storylines play out on TV.
In July, spoilers surfaced revealing some of what happened and which couples left together when Bachelor in Paradise's ninth season was filmed in Mexico in June.
After Zach eliminated Brooklyn on The Bachelor, she told Us Weekly that she felt "blindsided."
"However, you know, having time reflect after that, I do feel like I got the closure I needed, and I respect him for it, truly. While I did feel blindsided in the moment, I respect his decision," Brooklyn said in March.
Brooklyn had told the cameras on the show how she was "falling in love" with Zach and could picture herself "spending the rest of my life" with him.
"When you have feelings that strong, they don't ever go away," Brooklyn confessed. "He's a great guy, but you know, if anyone ever has any doubts about me, that's not someone I truly want to be with."
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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
