The Bachelor’s Kelsey Anderson Says Dad Mark Is ‘Open’ to Starring on ‘Golden Bachelor’
The Bachelor fans quickly fell in love with Kelsey Anderson’s dad, Mark Anderson, and suggested that he star on season 2 of The Golden Bachelor. Following the finale episode, she weighed in on the potential casting.
“[My] initial response was traumatized that there were trap videos that people made about my dad,” Kelsey, 25, told People in an interview published on Tuesday, March 26. “But then I decided to take a step back and I was like, ‘You know what? My dad deserves all of this praise and love. He is an amazing dad, and he was an amazing husband to my mom.’ I think that my dad deserves all the love.”
Fans first got to meet Mark – whose late wife died in 2018 following her battle with breast cancer – when he made his reality TV debut Kelsey’s hometown date on March 4.
Kelsey added that her relationship with Joey Graziadei, whom she got engaged to during the Monday, March 25, finale, played a role in Mark potentially starring on The Golden Bachelor.
“I think that my dad sees how great Joey and I are together, and he has talked to me about how Joey and I would've never met each other if it wasn't for this show, so he's open to it,” she explained. “My mom always told him that she wanted him to find love if she ever passed away before him, and that she wanted him to be happy and have that partnership after her, so I think that it would be a great push for him to open up to that and to see if he could find love on a TV show.”
Joey, 28, added that he thinks Mark “would crush it” on The Bachelor spinoff. “He has a presence about him,” the Pennsylvania native said. “So, if he's open to it, I think he'd do really well.”
While Mark’s future on the dating franchise is currently unclear, Kelsey and Joey are likely done with dating reality shows following their engagement. However, the pair said they’re in no rush to tie the knot.
“It’s time now to enjoy this. We have the rest of our lives to celebrate it,” Joey told People about their engagement, while Kelsey said they will likely wait two to three years until they get married. “We’re going to take it day by day and just enjoy this time.”
In addition to sharing their plans for a long engagement, the couple also revealed they are moving to New York City together. “I’ve always wanted to live there and Joey is supporting me in that,” Kelsey explained. “We’re young and I think now is the time to live in a tiny, cramped apartment together and experience it. Even if we hate it, at least we can say we did it.”
