‘The Bachelor’ spoilers: Juan Pablo Galavis’ premiere date, audition insanity

When Chris Harrison boasted time and time again on “The Bachelor” that Juan Pablo Galavis was popular, and without getting much screen time in the process, he was not joking at all. We had a feeling that this guy would get some interested ladies out there filling out applications for the show … but three thousand in a week? This is one of those numbers that almost makes us have some cartoon eyes shooting straight out of our head.

This number, which we assume will start to taper off now that the selection hype is over, was first reported via show creator Mike Fleiss, who clearly has an enormous vested interest in trying to make the show as great as it can possibly be after Desiree Hartsock’s low-rated outing. “The Bachelor” tends to always fare better than the spin-off show, and having someone that brings something different to the table will be a tremendous asset for it.

Meanwhile, fellow producer Robert Mills tweeted out that the premiere date for Juan Pablo’s season  is going to be none other than January 6, presumably at 8:00 p.m. Eastern like every other season premiere. While this is technically an announcement, it’s hardly a surprising one. “The Bachelor” almost always returns on the first non-holiday Monday of the new year, when it does not have to compete against the likes of “The Voice” and some other broadcast competition. For those curious about other programming, this is the day following the season 4 premiere of “Downton Abbey” on PBS. (It’s a little random, but that’s the only other noteworthy date that we have more than four months in advance.)

Applicants are not the only people out there excited about the idea of Juan Pablo as “Bachelor.” Some former stars have expressed their excitement online, and even longtime critics of the franchise finally have something to celebrate in a minority being picked.

Photo: ABC