‘The Bachelor’: Ben Higgins handles first duties as leading man

Being “The Bachelor” is a gig that Ben Higgins had to expect for quite some time. We’re pretty sure that he had to know he was the favorite a good month ago for the part based on audience reaction, and while we thought for a split second on Monday that ABC was about to hand over the reigns to Nick Viall (he’s polarizing, but it probably would have been an entertaining season!), Ben eventually came out on “After Paradise” and explained that he was thrilled to get the job.

Of course, now Ben is doing all of the gigs that you would expect from a new Bachelor, including appearing on “Good Morning America” this morning and talking about how ready he is for the gig.

Now, we do want to spend a minute talking about a different subject: How he “wants” Amy Schumer to be a contestant. Bachelor franchise, stop trying to make Amy happen as a huge part of this show. She’s a huge star in comedy right now, but she’s not going to be the Bachelorette and she’s not going to be a contestant on “The Bachelor.” She’s got way too much going on for that, even if her phone call last night was pretty funny.

Now, some other details: Ben’s season will start filming probably at some point in September, and should stay in production until right before Thanksgiving. We’re sure that at least one former contestant on “The Bachelor” / “Bachelor in Paradise” will turn up just because of the fact that it’s more airtime and Ben is pretty beloved. Also, Nick showing up was one of the main story points for “The Bachelorette” this past season.

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