时间:2025-04-26 13:22:07 来源:网络整理编辑:探索
Matt James is making reality TV history as The Bachelor's first Black lead.James, who fans of the fr
Matt James is making reality TV history as The Bachelor's first Black lead.
James, who fans of the franchise may know as former contestant Tyler Cameron's best friend and business partner, was originally cast as a contestant on Clare Crawley's upcoming season of The Bachelorette. (The season was set to film this year but production shut down in March because of the coronavirus.) On Friday, however, ABC announced that James will in fact be starring as the show's next bachelor.
The announcement, which marks a diversity milestone that fans have been requesting and petitioning about for years, means that James will bethe show's first black bachelor. In 2017, Rachel Lindsay became the first Black bachelorette, but the franchise has received a fair share of criticism over the years for a lack of diversity.
Tweet may have been deleted
"Matt has been on our radar since February, when producers first approached him to join Bachelor Nation, as part of Clare's season. When filming couldn't move forward as planned, we were given the benefit of time to get to know Matt and all agreed he would make a perfect Bachelor," ABC Entertainment president Karey Burke said in a statement announcing the casting on Friday.
"We know we have a responsibility to make sure the love stories we're seeing onscreen are representative of the world we live in and we are proudly in service to our audience. This is just the beginning and we will continue to take action with regard to diversity issues on this franchise. We feel so privileged to have Matt as our first Black Bachelor and we cannot wait to embark on this journey with him," Burke said.
SEE ALSO:Everything coming to Hulu in June 2020Though ABC naming a Black bachelor is a huge step that's worthy of celebration, it's long overdue. And it's worth noting that the announcement not only comes amidst worldwide protests against racism, but also at a particularly strained time for the franchise.
In May, former bachelorette Hannah Brown came under fire from fans and fellow former contestants for singing the n-word in an Instagram story.
Rachel Lindsay addressed Brown's comments in a lengthy Instagram video, and explained that she is "tired" of feeling a duty to speak up on matters concerning race as the franchise's sole black lead.
"After almost four years in this franchise, we still don't have the diversity that this show needs, and that our audience deserves."
Lindsay later revealed that after several phone conversations and messages exchanged with Brown, she was ultimately disappointed in the way Brown chose to release her apology statement. Lindsay also appeared on The Viall Files, a podcast hosted by former contestant and bachelor Nick Viall, to further discuss her feelings about the situation.
Brown has since apologized to fans again in an Instagram live video, but on Tuesday, Lindsay penned a personal blog post to clarify reports that she plans to "disassociate" herself from the Bachelorfranchise if they don't start taking diversity seriously.
"I am sad to say that after almost four years in this franchise, we still don't have the diversity that this show needs, and that our audience deserves," the 35-year-old wrote. "It is a naive expectation to believe that leads will authentically start an interracial relationship for the first time on national television. The sad reality is that people of color become placeholders as the token person of color to add some flavor to the second half of the season."
Lindsay went on to detail all the steps she's taken over the years to call out the show's lack of representation, and she urged the franchise to "make a statement acknowledging their systemic racism."
"Only time will tell how the franchise will respond, but to date they have been silent," she concluded.
On Friday, when James appeared on Good Morning America to discuss his big news, he spoke on race and acknowledged Lindsay's frustration with the franchise.
Tweet may have been deleted
"I think it's a step in the right direction. When Rachel speaks, we listen," he said."She has a very important voice in all this, being the first Black woman, person of color to have a lead...and this is hopefully the first of many Black men to be in the position I'm at now."
Lindsay also spoke to GMAto share her thoughts on the Bachelor's latest casting decision. "I was hoping when I came on to be a trailblazer for that and to increase diversity in the audience that watches it. But in the last three years, there really haven't been changes made," she said.
"I want producers of color," she continued. "I'd like for them to cast leads that are interested in dating outside of their race that aren't just getting their first-time experience — for the first time — on national TV. I need the acknowledgment of that. Not putting a band-aid over the situation and just saying, 'Here, we're going to put this here. Are you happy now?'"
Lindsay is far from the only person who's been advocating for more diversity in the franchise. A change.org petition, called, "A Campaign For Anti-Racism in the Bachelor Franchise," was recently launched and has amassed more than 85,000 signatures. The petition was started by the Bachelor Diversity Campaign, a group that's calling for more diverse "relationships, families, and storylines" to be featured on the show.
Brett Vergara, one of the people involved in putting the Bachelor Diversity Campaign together, told Mashable that the effort started on Facebook. "It formed on a thread in my BachelorFacebook group, Brett's Bachelor Buds, and gradually evolved from a venting post about how we're all a bit disappointed in a franchise we love, and it ultimately brought us together to an actual plan of practical action," he explained in an email.
Vergara went on to say that in addition to a whole lot of fans, the group was "humbled and encouraged" to see former contestants from the show — including Lindsay, Cameron, Desiree Siegfried, Becca Tilley, and more — show their support.
As for the forthcoming Bachelorseason, Vergara and the team behind the campaign are happy to see that progress is starting to be made.
"We're thrilled ABC has taken this critical first step at addressing the franchise's race issues, and we're excited to watch Matt James take the helm, but we also want to be clear there's plenty more work to do and plan to hold ABC accountable on that work, Vergara wrote. "While casting a Black Bachelor is a great start, continuing to cast, hire, and support BIPOC contestants and crew is even more important during the show and its aftermath. The practical steps we believe ABC / Warner Bros can take can be found in our petition."
Though James' leading role is certainly a step in the right direction, fans are making it known that the franchise will have to sustain their efforts to make the cast, crew, and show as a whole more diverse and inclusive to all people.
Update: 6/12, 11:50 am ET: This post has been updated with quotes from Vergara.
TopicsDiversity
WhatsApp announces plans to share user data with Facebook2025-04-26 13:14
圈內人士:李霄鵬電話無人接聽 他能力沒問題2025-04-26 12:59
曝國安明年將重建 球隊確實存在資金問題但正在解決中2025-04-26 12:55
內部形勢相比以往嚴峻 李霄鵬執教難度遠超前任2025-04-26 12:40
Aly Raisman catches Simone Biles napping on a plane like a champion2025-04-26 12:39
巴黎VS布魯日首發 :梅西姆巴佩先發 迪馬利亞出戰2025-04-26 12:17
廣州隊參訓球員已達20餘人 韋世豪何超多位國腳均已歸隊2025-04-26 12:00
萊萬輕鬆斬獲德甲本輪最佳 2進球助力拜仁4分領跑2025-04-26 11:29
J.K. Rowling makes 'Harry Potter' joke about Olympics event2025-04-26 11:03
7日賠率:米蘭不敗紅軍仍抱憾出局 皇馬頭名出線2025-04-26 10:53
Metallica to seek and destroy your eardrums with new album this fall2025-04-26 13:15
日韓周報 :孫興慜造4球狀態火熱 久保健英絕殺馬競2025-04-26 13:02
無能狂怒 ?莫拉塔兩失必進球 被換下還與囧叔互懟2025-04-26 12:54
薩拉赫:金球獎評判標準不公平 未來我肯定會拿2025-04-26 12:49
Darth Vader is back. Why do we still care?2025-04-26 12:48
廣州城官方宣布日本青訓總教練離任 已效力4年2025-04-26 12:44
廣州城官方宣布日本青訓總教練離任 已效力4年2025-04-26 12:25
曝青島隊隊員表態不解決欠薪不進入賽區 現場外援情緒激動2025-04-26 12:05
This app is giving streaming TV news a second try2025-04-26 11:34
4 really weird things you can do in 'Palworld'2025-04-26 11:07