New ‘Bachelorette’ Katie Thurston: What To Know

The Bachelorette is officially back and with a new lead — Katie Thurston. The ABC staple, which premieres on Monday at 8 p.m. ET, will see Thurston dating a series of men in the hopes that she will ultimately find “the one” (a.k.a. her final rose recipient). But, who is Thurston?

Fans initially met Thurston when she competed on the most recent season of The Bachelor, which saw Matt James as the lead. While she did not end up stealing James’ heart (he ended up giving his final rose to Rachael Kirkconnell), Thurston still made a splash on the season. More specifically, she made a big impact after she exited the limo on the first night with a vibrator in tow. Throughout the season, the new Bachelorette stood up for the other women in the house in the face of bullying. At one point during the season, she even brought up the bullying situation to James directly, which did lead to some issues between her and the other contestants. But, many viewers took a liking to Thurston because of the fact that she did not let the bullying go unchecked.

According to her bio on the ABC website, Thurston is a native of Washington state and is 30 years old. She is a marketing manager who also has a penchant for social media. The Bachelorette star currently has over 600,000 followers on Instagram. Ahead of the premiere of The Bachelorette, Thurston shed some light on what viewers can expect during the season. During an interview with Entertainment Tonight, she explained that she fell in love more than once.

“I fall in love more than once,” Thurston shared. She added about her journey this season, “Nothing’s off limits this season. Love is love, and I gotta do what I gotta do.” Elsewhere in her interview, the reality star said that she would continue to showcase the sex-positive side of herself, just as she did on The Bachelor. Thurston told the outlet, “I’m embracing who I am and if a guy can’t accept me being sex-positive or talking about sex, it’s just not gonna work out. There are some people who are a little traditional and old school, but people around my age and younger, we’re here for it. It’s 2021, embrace your sexuality and be an empowered woman.”