Just as the summer ends, one summer show begins.
Bachelor in Paradise, which used to begin airing in early August, has a scheduled late September start for the second year in a row. It also has a brand new day of the week as Mondays and Tuesdays are no longer the day to tune in to see your favorite reality beach drama.
This season, ABC is dedicating Monday nights to Monday Night Football, which they normally air on ESPN. This is partly due to the WGA strike, which recently ended, because it means that no new scripted shows are available. Dancing With the Stars, usually a Monday night show, was thus moved to Tuesday nights.
The shuffling of shows continued with The Bachelor spin-off series as Bachelor in Paradise will air on Thursdays this year.
There’s also another new twist. It will air the same night as the brand new The Golden Bachelor, which will make for a weekly Bachelor doubleheader for the very first time in the franchise’s history.
When time does Bachelor in Paradise 2023 air?
The Golden Bachelor will air at 8pm ET on Thursday nights, immediately followed by Bachelor in Paradise at 9pm ET. Obviously, The Golden Bachelor will be one hour long whereas Bachelor in Paradise will be two hours long each week. Both shows have already concluded taping, having been filmed over the summer, and host Jesse Palmer claims that the happenings at the beach this year were insane.
The doubleheader begins Thursday, Sept. 28 on ABC, making this season 9 of Bachelor in Paradise the latest start in the show’s history, in terms of a calendar date for the premiere.
In case you’re wondering how long the respective seasons will last, ABC has not released a schedule yet but The Bachelor is normally a show that lasts 10 weeks. If that happens with The Golden Bachelor then it means the penultimate episode would air on Thanksgiving night. That seems like ABC would either push the episode to be a double-episode finale the following week or that it will be a slightly shorter season than The Bachelor.
The potential Thanksgiving dilemma will also likely mean a late episode of Bachelor in Paradise will be moved or that it will end a week earlier, unless ABC decides to air the reality dramas on Thanksgiving anyway. Information about the respective finales are all pure speculation at this point.
So, strap in and get ready for a Bachelor franchise doubleheader beginning this Thursday night and taking us to right around Turkey Day. All episodes will be available on Hulu just one day after they air.
Nothing like watching summer shows near the holidays.
