Mike Johnson Is Not The Next ‘Bachelor’ & Fans Are Furious

Peter Weber was announced as the next Bachelor during the Bachelor In Paradise reunion on September 17 and fans are not happy! Bachelor fans pushed for Mike Johnson to become the series lead and become the first black Bachelor as well as the first military veteran to step into the role. After ABC shared photos of Peter to social media, people flooded the comments section and slammed the network for the decision.

Photo credit: ABC/John Fleenor

Chris Harrison tried to upsell fans on the idea that Peter, 28, is unique from past leads. “You're different from any other Bachelor we've ever had," Chris, 48, told Peter after the announcement. "We've never had somebody who lives about five minutes from the Bachelor mansion. You literally grew up in the shadows of that mansion."

Photo credit: ABC/John Fleenor

“@chrisbharrison so did you just try to replace Mike being the first black bachelor with Peter being the first guy to live close to the mansion? #thebachelor #BachelorInParadise,” one fan slammed. Another added, “24 seasons of Peters. I won’t be watching.”

Photo credit: ABC/John Fleenor

Other fans pointed out that they didn’t hate Peter, but Mike was the better option. “I don't have anything against @pilot_pete, I think he's actually great and sweet and I think his journey to find love is going to be cool and hopefully successful, BUT I think it was about time to have a black Bachelor. This is getting [ridiculous] already... It should have been @mikejohnson1_ especially because he fills all the boxes. He's the full package. You all just missed an amazing opportunity with him,” one fan wrote.

Photo credit: ABC/Craig Sjodin

Another said, “Love Peter, and ABC missed the boat on casting. Should have been Mike Johnson. Why is ABC biased against black men? Come on ABC...a black male Bachelor is way overdue. The world is made up of more than white people and so are your viewers. Disappointed as I held out hope that you’d get it right this time.”

Photo credit: ABC/John Fleenor

Some fans labeled Peter as “boring” based on his time on Hannah Brown’s season of The Bachelorette. One person commented, “BORING!!!! Mike was robbed.” Another referenced the infamous Fantasy Suite date where Hannah, 24, admitted to sleeping with Peter four times in a windmill. “Peter will always be known as the guy who slept with Hannah 4 times and got dumped the next day. We get it, he's easy and a sure thing, but oh so boring!!” they commented.

Photo credit: ABC/John Fleenor

Many contestants in the Bachelor franchise seemed supportive of Peter, but Rachel Lindsay, who was the series’ first black Bachelorette, was outspoken about her disapproval. “I think Peter seems like a very nice guy. He seems lovely. This is absolutely nothing against him, but how many Peters have we seen before?" she Rachel, 34, told Entertainment Tonight after the announcement. "What season are we on? 24. So, we've seen 24 Peters. I'm bored. And it's nothing personal against him."

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"For the first time, I was very confident that we were going to see our first black Bachelor. So if no one else is going to speak on it, then I guess it's my duty to say it,” she added. “I'm sure they have some reason for not picking him, and I'm going to trust in that, but at the same time, the system isn't working in giving us a Bachelor who is a person of color. So we need to change the system.”

Photo credit: ABC/John Fleenor

Rachel and Juan Pablo are the only two people of color who have been leads in the franchise’s 17 years. Peter is half-Cuban.

Photo credit: ABC/John Fleenor

Mike has been getting hot and heavy in the comments section with Demi Lovato, who sparked a friendship with his ex Hannah. The two have gone on a few dates, so some fans believe that’s the reasoning behind ABC’s decision. One fan commented, “I would rather see Mike with Demi Lovato! So alright Peter! Let’s see what you got!”