Ben Higgins took issue with one part of The Bachelorette premiere — he wished viewers learned more about Jenn Tran.
“We still did not get to know a lot about Jenn, even on this episode,” Ben, 35, said on the Tuesday, July 9, episode of the “Almost Famous” podcast. “She is our Bachelorette, and one of the things that we were — not concerned about — but wanted, desired, was to learn more about Jenn because we did not get to see a ton of Jenn on Joey [Graziadei]’s season of The Bachelor.”
The former Bachelor noted that viewers were able to glean certain aspects about Jenn during the Monday, July 8, episode of the ABC series, but he wanted more.
“We got to hear a little bit about her family dynamics and what she wanted, and desired, for life and kind of her schooling,” he continued. “I will say I want to learn more about Jenn for one reason and one reason only. I think I really like Jenn.”
Ben praised Jenn’s ability to handle the first night of season 21 of the reality dating series, noting that he appreciated “her responses, her ability to listen, her ability to make fun, to laugh, to kind of ease the nervousness of all these guys.” He added that Jenn maneuvered the premiere “better than any lead that we’ve seen in recent history.”
“I thought she was amazing on night one,” he said. “So, I just want to know more about her. I hope we get to.”
Cohost Ashley Iaconetti added that she hopes viewers get glimpses of Jenn through her one-on-one dates, with producers editing little of the leading lady’s conversations with her contestants.
Bachelor Nation met Jenn when she vied for the affections of Joey, 29, on his season 28 of The Bachelor. Following the March finale, when viewers learned he popped the question to Kelsey Anderson, Jenn was crowned the next Bachelorette.
While Jenn has remained tight-lipped about the outcome of her season, she teased to Us Weekly ahead of the premiere that she’s “very happy” with the ending.
“I can say that I definitely opened my heart up to a lot of different connections and explored a lot of these [men]. The way that things panned out throughout the journey and the way that things ended, I’m very happy about [it],” she shared.
The Bachelorette airs on ABC Mondays at 8 p.m. ET.
