Jed McIntosh was reportedly approached to be a contestant on Brooke Blurton’s season of The Bachelor but turned down the role, telling producers he wanted to be the lead.
According to Yahoo Lifestyle Australia, Jed was sought out by producers after they saw his social media account and liked his “alternative” look.
“Jed basically responded to them and said no I don’t want to be a contestant, I want to be The Bachelor instead. He didn’t think this would ever happen, but months later he got a call saying bosses would love to meet him and his request actually happened,” a source said.
They added, “He held out because he knew if he appeared on Brooke’s season he could be out in the first episode and would gain no public profile.”
Jed will star as one of three leads on the upcoming season of The Bachelor, which will air on January 9, 2023, alongside Felix Von Hofe and Thomas Malucelli.
McIntosh is a drummer for Melbourne band Mood Monroe and has played with some big names including Kylie Minogue, Pharrell Williams, T-Pain and Sean Paul. Von Hofe is a marketing manager who was a captain for the Melbourne Tigers and Malucelli is a fitness and life coach.
“No one in the world has ever had three bachelors and so, therefore, the way it works, the way everyone gets to know each other is very different this year,’ host Osher Günsberg said on The Project in May.
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“It’s already been fascinating. We’ve been going [filming] for a little while now and it is already just electrifying what we’re seeing.”
A source recently told Yahoo Lifestyle Australia that showrunners from the network were frustrated that Thomas was promoting hs book and Jed has recently been dropping music on Instagram.
“When the leads have so many projects ready to drop and promote before the show, it ruins the integrity a little and the illusion these people are there looking for love. They’ve been told to hold off with their side projects until after the show has aired,” the source said.
“It said they were embarrassing, and if we wanted our [Instagram] blue ticks and $5,000 bonus, we had to stay away from any events or other reality stars,” they added.
For more on this topic, follow the Reality TV Observer.
