Former Bachelor Ben Higgins has revealed that his wife Jessica Clarke never watched The Bachelor at all before they began dating. And she’s never seen his season either.
“I bet Jess has asked me about the show less than five times in our four years together,” Ben recently told Us Magazine, while sharing his wife’s thoughts on the franchise. “Like, [she’s] never watched [it].”
His mother-in-law, however, was a fan of The Bachelor, and the esthetician actually caught a glimpse of her future husband when his season aired in 2016. “She watched one episode [of] my season when she was in college, and her mom claims that Jessica walked in the room and [said], ‘I could date that guy,'” Ben said. “Her mom said that was shocking, because Jessica never spoke like that. Like, [she] never spoke openly about who she was into or what she’s into.”
The comment made such an impact on Jessica’s mom that when Ben slid into her DMs years later, she encouraged her daughter to respond. “Her mom was like, ‘Whoa, that’s . . . a weird [full] circle moment,'” the TV personality continued. “[She said], ‘You should message him back. See what happens.’ And then we’re married.”
Just over one year after the Season 11 The Bachelorette contestant reached out to Jessica via Instagram, it was confirmed in March 2020 that the pair were engaged, dashing the dreams of every fan of the show who adored sweet Ben. “Every Thanksgiving from now on, I’ll remember the first message you sent me!” Jessica wrote via Instagram in November of that year, while recalling their online introduction. “Waking up 2 years ago and seeing a DM from a random stranger, I never imagined I’d be marrying him.”
“Thank you for supporting me in following my dreams, loving me on my most tired days, making me a better person, and always making me feel like I am good enough just as I am,” Jessica continued. “[L]ast year when we were traveling all of the time, I remember being so worried that one day life would slow down and we wouldn’t know what to do with one another, but this year [during the Covid pandemic] I’ve learned that those slow days are my favorite.”
Ben and Jessica tied the knot in Nashville in November 2021, with many members of The Bachelor franchise in attendance. Despite their friendship with many other Bachelor Nation couples, Ben has continued to insist that his wife has no plans to watch his season — or any season — of The Bachelor.
“It’s not hard for me to watch back because I know what to expect. But Jess will not be watching it, she doesn’t have a desire to watch it,” the Alone in Plain Sight author said in June 2020. “She is my partner, and I want her to know that, I don’t want her to feel any sort of heartbreak or sadness from that. So . . . she will not be watching it. I think she’s decided . . . And if she wanted to, I’d let her. I mean, I don’t really want to tell her what to do.” I should hope not, Ben.
Despite having told two women (Lauren Bushnell and JoJo Fletcher) that he loved them on his Season 20 of The Bachelor, Ben broke JoJo’s heart and proposed to Lauren on the March 2016 finale of the show, but the couple broke up just over one year later.
Even though it didn’t work out with Lauren, the Bachelor: Winter Games alum doesn’t regret his time as the Bachelor, as the experience eventually led him to his wife. “It was all on my way to Jess,” he said. “And I’ll [always] see it that way. I believe it’s that way. I believe everything led me to this point in my life.”
TELL US- IF YOU WERE MARRYING A FORMER BACHELOR OR BACHELORETTE CONTESTANT, WOULDN’T YOU WANT TO WATCH THE SEASON THEY’D BEEN ON? OR WOULD YOU?
[Photo Credit: David Becker/Getty Images for iHeartMedia]
