In defense of virgin Colton Underwood as The Bachelor: He's a wholesome change of pace to previous seasons

The Hollywood Reporter

"He is a wholesome choice," says Jackie Strause, "and that is something this franchise could certainly use after being hit with backlash over Arie's season — when the 'kissing bandit' was criticized as the wrong lead in the #MeToo era — and Becca's cycle, which was hit with bad behavior and scandal time and again, including one contestant being convicted of sexual assault. One way to fix the franchise's vetting issues is certainly to lure more wholesome contestants with the safest pick. He's also dated someone famous outside the franchise (Aly Raisman) and has the biggest social media following of the new bunch — two checks in the "potential ratings" column for ABC."

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• Colton is The Bachelor's most conservative pick yet: He'll have no problem upholding the show's quietly conservative, family-oriented values
• Why Colton's virginity won't be a big deal when it comes to fantasy suites
• Colton makes sense because he's pretty stereotypical Bachelor Nation with his wholesome, middle America looks