THE BACHELOR GETTING DIVERSE

The new season of The Bachelor will have its first Black male lead. New York realtor Matt James, 28, will front the 25th season of the show next year.

James was picked as a contestant on the upcoming season of The Bachelorette, which was forced to halt production due to the coronavirus pandemic, but when fans called for more diversity on the show he was upgraded to The Bachelor.

“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. “This is just the beginning and we will continue to take action with regard to diversity issues on this franchise.”

In the franchise’s 20 years, there has only been one black lead — Rachel Lindsay was The Bachelorette in 2017.