Zach Shallcross will soon be the one handing out the roses.
The Bachelorette frontrunner will be the season 27 lead of The Bachelor, host Jesse Palmer announced on the Sept. 20 After the Final Rose special. After announcing the news, Jesse brought the tech executive on-stage, where Zach said, “I’m just taking this in right now. This is pretty incredible.”
“Obviously everybody saw the heartbreak in Mexico,” Zach said of his breakup with Bachelorette Rachel Recchia during part one of the finale. “I really needed to take some time away to reflect and heal that broken heart. But what I learned from that experience is that it didn’t change how ready I am.”
When Jesse asked Zach how he had been preparing for his new role, he said he had been spending plenty of time with his family, adding, “I also went to the gym a lot.”
During the season, Zach caught Rachel’s eye early, earning her first one-on-one. During the date, the two watched home videos of one another and compared childhood memories, bonding over the fact that they both used to visit airports when they were kids. They became exceedingly close during his successful Anaheim, Calif. hometown date, where Zach was supported by his uncle, Family Guy actor Patrick Warburton.