Bachelor in Paradise 2023: Everything We Know

Publish date: 0001-01-01

For the cultured reality TV watchers among us who know that Bachelor in Paradise is the Bachelor franchise’s best offshoot (don’t @ me), you’re in luck: The next season of BiP is finally just a few weeks away.

As always, it’ll follow a gang of alumni from recent seasons of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette who flocked to the Playa Escondida resort in the small town of Sayulita, Mexico, earlier this summer for another shot at love. This season marks the ninth installment in the series, and if the latest teasers are anything to go by, it just might set a new record for the number of tears, love triangles, wacky mishaps, and ABC-manufactured twists to hit the beach.

We won’t know for sure who all leaves the beach hand-in-hand with a new fiancé until the season finale, but for a recap of everything we do know so far, cue up Mike Reno and Ann Wilson’s “Almost Paradise” and keep reading.

When will ‘Bachelor in Paradise’ premiere?

In the first twist of the season, BiP will break with tradition to air on—gasp!—Thursday nights, instead of the franchise’s usual Monday or Tuesday timeslot. It’ll debut in a two-hour episode on Sept. 28 at 9 p.m. Eastern, following the hour-long premiere of the latest addition to the Bachelor family, The Golden Bachelor. The episodes will then hit Hulu on Fridays.

Is there a trailer for the new season of ‘BiP’?

Oh, is there! ABC dropped a three-minute trailer for the season during the finale of Charity Lawson’s season of The Bachelorette, and it’s jam-packed with drama. There are at least two love triangles, four former Bachelorettes, multiple make-outs and countless crying sessions.

And what season of Bachelor in Paradise would be complete without some sort of medical or meteorological emergency? This year, the medics are called in to help Sam Jeffries, who you may remember as the woman who showed up to Clayton Echard’s season of The Bachelor in a bathtub and then promptly self-eliminated. They warn her that after going nine days without a bowel movement, she’s at risk of having to essentially deliver a “poo baby”—real words from a medical professional. That questionable term, of course, promptly becomes a running joke among Jeffries’ fellow cast members.

See all the ups, downs and backed-up bowel jokes for yourself:

There’s also a tongue-in-cheek poster for the season:

Who will host ‘BiP’?

Once again, Jesse Palmer will serve as host, while Bachelor Nation fixture Wells Adams will return as bartender.

Adams shared several dispatches from the beach as filming got underway in June. By day two, the 39-year-old was already mystified by the younger contingent of BiP stars, as evidenced by an Instagram Story in which he reported, “It’s official, the beach has been taken over by a bunch of Gen Zers who are using words that I don’t know what they mean at all.”

He also documented his wife, Modern Family star Sarah Hyland, coming to visit him on set toward the end of June—possibly hinting at a fun cameo for the season?

In a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight, Palmer teased that this season will bring "something really special and unique...something to celebrate," while Adams spoke a bit on the upcoming twists.

"I imagine there will be things that people were not expecting to happen this year and they will probably be very angry about it," he said, adding, "But I'll be fine because I'll be making drinks in the back and just watching the dumpster fire burn in front of me."

Who else is going to the beach this year?

ABC unveiled the official cast list in a late August video:

As seen in the video, the singles swinging onto the beach this season of Bachelor in Paradise span several recent installments of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. Here they all are, organized by their latest appearances:

Charity Lawson’s season of The Bachelorette: Brayden Bowers, Aaron Bryant, Peter Cappio, Sean McLaughlin, Aaron Schwartzman

Zach Shallcross’ season of The Bachelor: Greer Blitzer, Jess Girod, Kat Izzo, Olivia Lewis, Mercedes Northup, Kylee Russell, Brooklyn Willie, Cat Wong

Gabby Windey and Rachel Recchia’s season of The Bachelorette: Rachel herself!

Clayton Echard’s season of The Bachelor: Eliza Isichei, Sam Jeffries

Michelle Young’s season of The Bachelorette: Will Urena

Katie Thurston’s season of The Bachelorette: Blake Moynes

That list only constitutes the original set of franchise alums to hit the beach. Even more will likely pop up as season nine goes on, based on spoilers from Reality Steve—which include mentions of John Henry Spurlock from Charity’s season and Aven Jones from Rachel’s—and the full-season trailer itself, which features a very blatant shot of Tyler Norris, who left the beach last summer engaged to Brittany Galvin.

BiP has also made a habit of bringing out other members of Bachelor Nation to offer advice, hand out date cards and generally relive the glory days—see: Ashley and Jared’s awkward extended stay on the beach last season. This time around, as seen in the trailer, several of Rachel’s fellow former Bachelorettes will fall into that category, including Charity Lawson and Hannah Brown, both of whom are newly engaged, and Katie Thurston, who’s shown gearing up for a tense encounter with ex-fiancé Blake Moynes.

What do we know about how this season of ‘Bachelor in Paradise’ will end?

Warning: Spoilers for season nine of Bachelor in Paradise ahead!

For one, if the sunset-backed shots in the trailer are to be believed, Jesse Palmer may finally see his dream of officiating a BiP wedding on the beach come true. According to Reality Steve, those “I dos” are coming from Kenny Braasch and Mari Pepin, who left BiP engaged in 2021. Pepin has said that they’re planning ceremonies in Puerto Rico in November and Chicago next spring, so it’s unclear just how legit their onscreen nuptials are.

Reality Steve has also said that at least three couples left the beach together: Kat and John Henry, Eliza and Aaron B., and Kylee and Aven, though only the first two duos got engaged before the season was out.