Matt James Makes History as ABC's First Black Bachelor | THR News - video Dailymotion

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Matt James was originally cast as a contestant on the upcoming Clare Crawley season and is known by Bachelor Nation as Tyler Cameron's best friend and business partner.

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00:00The Bachelor has found its new leading man, and he's making history as the franchise's first black Bachelor.

00:06In its 40 seasons and 18 years on the air, The Bachelor has never had a black male lead,

00:12but that all changed Friday when ABC casted Matt James, a 28-year-old real estate broker and entrepreneur,

00:18for the show's landmark 25th season, following days of renewed public pressure to cast a black leading man,

00:24citing the franchise's lack of diversity.

00:26James was previously set to be a contestant on Claire Crawley's forthcoming season of The Bachelorette

00:31before production was shut down in March and postponed indefinitely amid the novel coronavirus pandemic.

00:37But James is not unfamiliar with Bachelor Nation, having been frequently seen on social media

00:41with fan favorites like Tyler Cameron and former Bachelorette Hannah Brown.

00:45James lives in New York City, where he and Cameron run ABC Food Tours,

00:49an organization that offers kids from underserved communities the opportunity to explore the city

00:53through food, exercise, and mental and physical health.

00:57He is also the first Bachelor since 2008's Matt Grant to be cast as the lead

01:01without having appeared as a contestant on The Bachelorette.

01:04The show's casting announcement follows vocal criticism from Bachelor Nation,

01:08including Rachel Lindsay, who in the 18 years since the franchise first began,

01:12had been the show's only black lead.

01:14Lindsay earlier this week penned an emotional blog post

01:17in which she called for the franchise's systemic racism to be addressed.

01:21The franchise's had the opportunity to cast diverse leads before James,

01:24most recently with Mike Johnson from Hannah Brown's season, but opted against it.

01:29As Lindsay noted in her post, creator Mike Fleiss previously said that her season saw a dip in ratings

01:34that suggested the franchise's audience did not want to watch a black woman

01:38or people of color in general find love.

01:40As for the 30 or so contestants every cycle, there are a handful of people of color in the mix,

01:45but they rarely crack the top four each season.

01:48ABC is currently airing The Bachelor, the greatest seasons ever,

01:51as a filler for Crowley's forthcoming season of The Bachelorette.

01:54No word yet on when James' season of The Bachelor will begin production,

01:57however, the show is scheduled to return in 2021.

02:00For more on the story, head to THR.com.

02:03For The Hollywood Reporter News, I'm Neha Joy.

Matt James Makes History as ABC's First Black Bachelor | THR News

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