In mid-July, our Lindsey Bartlett noted rumors that Denver's Ben Higgins would be the next star of The Bachelor and offered five reasons why ABC should choose him.
And the network did.
Higgins has now been officially named to star in the latest edition of the long-running reality show — and while his Twitter response shows how excited he is to move forward, he's already having to defend himself against the suggestion that he's not exactly a scintillating personality.
As is made clear by this publicity shot....
...Higgins is mighty easy on the eyes.
Nonetheless, The Bachelorette's Kaitlyn Bristowe eventually ditched him despite how good they look together in this pic from Higgins's Instagram account:
Nonetheless, Bristowe didn't give him the heave-ho lightly.
In a conversation with Zap2It cited by Bartlett, she said, "“Ben H. is God’s gift to women. He’s just got it all going on. Ben is someone who looks at marriage as a goal. That’s something he wants to work towards. Something that in twenty years he will still work at. He’s a true gentleman, he’s good-looking and you would never question him.”
These qualities no doubt inspired ABC to put Higgins front and center for the next season of The Bachelor.
Here's how he responded on Twitter:
Off to New York! Thanks a ton #BachelorNation I am so excited to share this story with you all. Let's Gooo! pic.twitter.com/t6n8mxO7aV
— Benjamin Higgins (@benhiggi) August 25, 2015
Not every Bachelor fan was instantly jazzed. Here's one example:Love @benhiggi but I feel it will be a Boring season #thebachelor
— NeyanB (@NeyanB_85) August 25, 2015
Rather than simply shrugging off this lukewarm response, Higgins tweeted back like so....
Come on, we can't let that happen! My story may not be the most dramatic but that doesn't mean it will be boring https://t.co/94svnWVyLW
— Benjamin Higgins (@benhiggi) August 25, 2015
...and his critic quickly succumbed to his charms:@benhiggi oops I do wish you the very best though & hope you find Love.
— NeyanB (@NeyanB_85) August 25, 2015
This change of heart inspired one more tweet from Higgins:Friend again? Promise you will watch with an open mind, this is real and I am excited to share it with you all. https://t.co/aZ4zIf3JxV
— Benjamin Higgins (@benhiggi) August 25, 2015
This Twitter exchange ended happily — but will the season? Higgins and ABC no doubt hope you'll tune in to find out.