‘The Bachelor’ 2023: Zach Shallcross Talks Barely Sleeping as the Show’s New Lead
Zach Shallcross’ journey to find love in The Bachelor 2023 has officially begun. The 26-year-old lead met 30 hopeful women during night one and quickly narrowed down his options. Zach is familiar with the franchise after competing for Rachel Recchia’s heart on The Bachelorette. However, he recently discussed his different experiences as the leading man, including barely getting any sleep.
Night one of ‘The Bachelor’ takes a notoriously long time to film
Being on The Bachelor might seem like a glamorous experience, but it’s a lot more grueling than the cameras portray. Night one of each season is particularly tough, especially the rose ceremony.
Multiple leads and contestants have discussed how filming for the first episode can last until the next morning. “You basically do everything in your power not to fall over from exhaustion,” Caila Quinn, a contestant from Ben Higgins’ Bachelor season, told Bustle.
Though it was an overwhelming night for everyone involved, Zach Shallcross had plenty of energy to get him through the evening. “Pure adrenaline was there. I mean, like, sure, there was, you know, some caffeine drinks there included because it’s a long, long night,” the Bachelor told Cinema Blend.
“It was a culmination of everything of, like, I’m really at this mansion again, and these 30 women are coming to meet me, which, I mean, it’s the most flattering thing I could have ever imagined in the world,” Zach continued. “To be honest, while it is the longest night in, I think, TV history or TV filming, I could have gone longer.”
Zach Shallcross describes being awake for nearly 24 hours while filming ‘The Bachelor’
Zach Shallcross was a contestant on The Bachelorette Season 19. He pursued Rachel Recchia and made it to hometown dates, then self-eliminated prior to the rose ceremony. While appearing on Good Morning America, Zach discussed the differences between being a contestant and a lead in the franchise.
“Being the Bachelor, it’s always going. Nonstop,” Zach revealed. “You’re awake close to 24 hours a day, and you’re just going on all these incredible dates with all these awesome women.” He added, “I don’t think I sleep ever, and that’s fine because the adrenaline is just going.”
It’s not surprising that the Bachelor has very little time to sleep. Filming for Zach’s season took place over the course of just a couple of months. As the Bachelor said, Zach found himself going on many adventurous dates, as well as traveling across the country to locations such as Estonia and Budapest.
Bachelor Nation has expressed concern over ‘exhausted’ leads
Though Zach Shallcross seems to have handled the lack of sleep pretty well, the exhausting filming conditions have caused some concern for Bachelor Nation in the past. During filming for Rachel Recchia and Gabby Windey’s season of The Bachelorette, the women and their contestants set sail on a cruise ship for the later part of the season.
When a photo of the women and Jesse Palmer on the cruise ship surfaced, some fans expressed concern. “They all look exhausted,” one Reddit user wrote. Another agreed, writing, “exhausted, for sure. And it looks highly possible Gabby has been crying.”
New episodes of The Bachelor air Mondays at 8 p.m. EST on ABC.
