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ABC’s The Bachelorette Season 21 features Jenn Tran as the new lead. Jenn was introduced during Joey Graziadei’s season of The Bachelor, and fans fell in love with her charming, candid nature. Unfortunately, she might have beef with Maria Georgas, a massive personality from the same Bachelor season. Here’s what’s going on.

Maria Georgas unfollowed Jenn Tran on Instagram following drama over ‘The Bachelorette’ Season 21

Maria Georgas unfollowed the next lead of The Bachelorette, Jenn Tran, on social media. So, what went down between the two women?

Maria was a fan favorite from Joey Graziadei’s season, and viewers expected her to take on the Bachelorette role. According to Maria, she was chosen for the role. But she decided to step down. In response, producers chose Jenn as the next star. The announcement was made during The Golden Bachelor finale.

Jenn addressed the claims that she was only chosen at the last minute while on the Call Her Daddy podcast. “Obviously, I was really disappointed to see all of that, because the truth of the matter is there’s a lot of narratives out there, and they’re not necessarily the truth,” Jenn said.

“The show has been going on for years and years, 21 years of this show specifically, and every season, there are multiple people in contention for the role,” she continued. “Multiple people are being interviewed or doing meetings about it all, doing fittings or filming intro packages. It’s never really you until it’s you. That’s why I was a little disappointed.”

Jenn added that the speculation took away from her personal journey as the lead. But it seems Maria didn’t like what Jenn had to say, resulting in the unfollow.

Why didn’t Maria Georgas take the lead role?

Maria Georgas speaking to host Jesse Palmer during 'The Bachelor' 'After the Final Rose'
Maria Georgas from ‘The Bachelor’ | Disney/John Fleenor

Maria Georgas said she was a shoo-in to become The Bachelorette lead.

“I was offered the role. It was mine until I said it wasn’t,” she said on the Call Her Daddy podcast. “It became very overwhelming to the point where I had to decline.”

So, why didn’t she accept the role?

“It was set in stone. I was in it,” Maria said. “When everyone around me was so supportive of me being in this position, and everyone wanted this for me, I took a second. I’m like, why am I not happy? Why am I not excited about this? It took me realizing that it’s just not my time where I was like, respectfully, I need to decline. I need to take a step back.”

Maria added that she didn’t want to “waste anyone’s time” as the lead and felt it was “hard” to jump back into the show after The Bachelor.

Jenn Tran talked about being a ‘good role model’ as the first Asian-American lead

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Jenn Tran is putting the drama with Maria Georgas aside to focus on her role as the lead of The Bachelorette. She’s the first Asian-American franchise lead and hopes to be a “good role model” moving forward.

“I think a lot of the pressure usually comes from me just wanting to be a good role model and just wanting to do it right, whatever ‘right’ means,” Jenn admitted during a Bachelor Nation interview. “I think, at the end of the day, what I need to tell myself is that it’s just about being myself and telling my story and doing that the best that I can. And it’s not about necessarily pleasing other people, which I do have a problem with, because I want everyone to be able to relate and learn from it.”

“I’m just so grateful and honored to be the first Asian-American lead and to be able to tell my story,” she added.

The Bachelorette Season 21 premieres July 8, 2024, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

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