The verdict’s still out on old-school fave Arie Luyendyk Jr. as the new Bachelor, but someone who’s definitely disappointed about the news is Rachel Lindsey’s runner-up Peter Kraus. Although he said he wasn’t thinking about starring on The Bachelor once Rachel’s season ended, Peter quickly emerged as one of fans’ top contenders for the Bachelor gig. With Arie’s new position official, Entertainment Weekly reports that fan favorite Peter believed the show was his “up until early this week.” Um, same.
“Peter got an indication yesterday that a new Bachelor was going to be announced and it wasn’t him,” an inside source revealed. “But he had no idea who it was or that it was specifically Arie.”
Bachelor producers and franchise creator Mike Fleiss have spent the past week being annoyingly cryptic about their final casting decision, and many fans were under the impression that Peter had rejected the team’s offer. The source shared that while Peter was conflicted about proposing at the show’s end, he still believed in the franchise’s process of finding love.
“He genuinely fell in love on The Bachelorette, so he knows this process works,” the source said. “His reservations weren’t about proposing or not proposing. Then [producers] came back to entice him and eased his concerns, and he was open to it. But suddenly over the last few days, it all went quiet.”
It sounds like the opportunity interested Peter, but ultimately, production wasn’t willing to bet on the guy who refused to propose at the end of The Bachelorette. The dreamy personal trainer first took to Twitter to hint at his feelings, perhaps suggesting that he was way more emotionally invested in being the Bachelor than we were let on to believe.
Never let fear hold you back. Lesson learned.
— Peter Kraus (@PeterWIKraus) September 7, 2017
“Never let fear hold you back,” Peter shared with his followers. “Lesson learned.”
Later that same day, Peter posted a longer reflection on his Instagram account. If you weren’t already a Peter fan, get ready to shed a few belated tears over what he’s been through in the past few months.
“First and foremost, [Rachel], there are so very many things that I’ve wished I could say to you since the day we parted ways in Spain,” he wrote, “but for everyone’s sake, I’ll keep it short…You gave me a chance and all that I can say is thank you. I have a heart filled with love for you now and always and wish you nothing but the best in your life and love ahead.”
“ABC, you saw something in me, but something held me back,” Peter continued. “I will be forever humbled and grateful and will always look back at these last six months with an ear to ear smile, knowing that this has truly been a very special life indeed.”
Then the lengthy caption became even deeper. “When you let uncertainty or fear guide your decisions, you risk missing out on what could potentially be the greatest opportunity of a lifetime,” he said. “So live dangerously, live without the fear of the unknown, and continue to live and love with a heart that is truly open to anything.”
Excuse me, I’m just weeping over the thought of a gorgeous man using words that way.
We’ll probably never know what went down with the negotiations regarding Peter as the Bachelor, but I’ll definitely miss him being on my TV.Â