And the next Bachelor is…not Mike Johnson, unfortunately

You thought you were surprised to learn that Mike Johnson wasn’t the next Bachelor? Just ask him how he felt.

Bachelor Nation found out who the next Bachelor will be during the Bachelor in Paradise season 6 finale, and I think it’s safe to say, there were a lot of conflicted feelings over the announcement. So who got the distinct honor this time around? Pilot Peter Weber.

You’ll remember him from Hannah Brown’s season of The Bachelorette, and memory will serve you correctly when it tells you that he is a cutie pie. He was amongst a group of three men that were contenders for the coveted spot including Mike Johnson and Tyler Cameron.

Tyler C. was out of the race fairly quickly after rumors began circulating that he’s dating Gigi Hadid, which dwindled it down to Pete and Mike. Many of us were excited at the prospect of Mike being the next Bachelor because it would make him the first African American to become one. And just as surprised as many fans were to learn that he would not be the franchise’s choice, so was he.

"“Right before going on stage, they told me I wasn’t going to be the Bachelor. And so, you got me out here, flew me to L.A. There was no need for me to be there, and you just told me I’m not gonna be the Bachelor,” Mike revealed in a new interview with People. “So I just didn’t want to be there at all. […] When I first found out, I’m not gonna lie — I was sad. I was annoyed when I very first found out. But then, I think by the end of the night, I wasn’t annoyed no more because I was appreciative and thankful that they told me ‘no’ right then and there because now I can focus on myself. I’m just blessed because I know I’mma find my wife and find my queen."

But don’t worry everyone! As brutal as that disappointment was, it’s been allegedly rumored that Mike has been spending some quality time with Demi Lovato, so there’s that!

This doesn’t take away from the anger fans are feeling over the franchise passing on Mike as the Bachelor, despite how much they love Pilot Pete. The issue being repeated time and time again is that Bachelor Nation has seen many versions of Pete over the course of their shows. It was the perfect time for change and opportunity, but unfortunately, we did not see that take place here.

Rachel Lindsay, the one and only African American Bachelorette, was not very happy to learn that Mike had been passed over for the title and expressed as much while speaking to Entertainment Tonight.

"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? What season are we on? Twenty-four. So, we’ve seen 24 Peters. I’m bored. And it’s nothing personal against him. […] For the first time, I was very confident that we were going to see our first black Bachelor. And so if no one else is going to speak on it, then I guess it’s my duty to say it."

Many of us can agree that the Bachelor Nation franchise would benefit from bringing in more diversity. Pilot Pete is an adorable, loveable guy and I personally look forward to seeing what his season will be like. But Mike would have been an amazing choice, and I’m disappointed that the franchise went with a completely different decision.

"“It was bigger than me and I wanted to represent for all people of color,” he explained to Lindsay. “And then also, talking about people of color, they need to have an Asian Bachelor, they need to have an Indian Bachelor, they need to have other people outside of just black and white and I wanted to speak on that as well. But I did audition to be the Bachelor, and I 100 percent did want to be the Bachelor.”"

Before learning the news, Johnson said he was already expecting things to not go the way he hoped they would.

"“I found out in the trailers before you go on Bachelor in Paradise reunion. And, I knew it. I already knew in my head. Yes I wanted to be the Bachelor, yes I auditioned to be the Bachelor. I went in there with the right intentions of wanting to find love and wanting to be true to myself. You might have seen du-rag king come back. I had a list, a word document, of the type of women I wanted, what I was scared of and what I wasn’t scared of.”"

Mike may not be the next Bachelor, but don’t worry. He may have found love in Demi Lovato, and if not, something tells me, he won’t be single for very long. After all, who can deny that incredible smile?

How did you feel when you learned Mike Johnson was not the next Bachelor? Share your comments below!