Kaitlyn Bristowe Lauds Taylor Frankie Paul “Bachelorette” News: 'This Will Bring Me Back In' (Exclusive)

Kaitlyn Bristowe says ABC's prime to lead nan adjacent play of The Bachelorette is "refreshing."

Speaking to PEOPLE successful an exclusive question and reply astatine the LadyWorld Festival successful Miramar Beach, Fla., 40-year-old Bristowe said nan show made a awesome determination successful casting its adjacent lead, Taylor Frankie Paul.

Paul — who has been portion of Hulu's The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives since 2024 — was announced arsenic nan adjacent lead connected nan ABC making love show earlier this month. In consequence to nan casting news, nan Off nan Vine host joked, "I deliberation now I won't beryllium nan only messy Bachelorette, and I americium present for that because I'm like, I conscionable want to promote her."

"I don't deliberation she needs encouragement actually," Bristowe, who led The Bachelorette's 11th play successful 2015, continued. "I deliberation she knows really to beryllium herself, and that's nan beauty of Taylor."

"She is not pretending to beryllium thing other but herself and I deliberation that's truthful refreshing, particularly connected reality TV," she added.

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Bristowe besides noted that she isn't judge whether Paul's inheritance successful reality tv will thief aliases wounded her travel Bachelorette time, saying "when you spot really nan sausage is made, you overthink things."

Still, she hopes Paul tin "surrender to nan process."

"I really deliberation this is truthful beautiful because truthful galore group are going connected this show to get an Instagram following," Bristowe said, noting that Paul doesn't request that.

"She has group it up like, what you spot is what you get," she explained. "You're stepping into my religion aliases my 3 children and this life that I unrecorded that's afloat connected camera, and I deliberation nan guys are going to spell successful pinch a small much volition than they would connected different seasons."

Bristowe further added that The Bachelor franchise was, for years, tied to fantasy. Paul's casting intends nan show mightiness show a much realistic look astatine relationships.

"I deliberation we each watched The Bachelor for nan imagination of it, but now we've seen that for truthful agelong and nan format sewage a small old and we cognize what's coming — we cognize nan play is coming, group aren't present for nan correct reasons, we're not present to make friends," she said. "I deliberation [Paul is] gonna beryllium a small much earthy and real. And I'm I'm present for that."

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Bristowe said she believes Paul will besides "have nan backbone besides to opportunity what she wants pinch producers — alternatively of being like, 'Well, I've ne'er done this before,' she could beryllium like, 'I cognize what I'm doing and this is what I want.' "

"I consciousness for illustration she's gonna beryllium very refreshing," she said. "I would honestly opportunity that this will bring maine backmost successful [to watching nan show]."

Another erstwhile Bachelorette, Rachel Lindsay, besides precocious told PEOPLE astatine the LadyWorld Festival that she is looking guardant to Paul's season arsenic well.

"I'm thrilled," Lindsay, 40, said. "I'm a instrumentality of Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. And I've been saying location needs to beryllium change. I've been asking for alteration successful a peculiar way. It has happened, but not fully, but I deliberation that this is nan show trying to measurement into 2025. They've been stuck successful 2002 for nan longest time, and this is simply a really beautiful way, I think, for them to do it, and I'm very excited for what's to come, and I deliberation it's a caller day."