Everything to Know About Buzzworthy New Dating Show, ‘The Proposal’

Just when you thought Mondays couldn’t be any more packed with questionable romantic tactics, here comes The Proposal.

The new ABC dating show, which premieres Monday, June 18 at 10 p.m. ET, following an all-new episode of The Bachelorette, features 10 “eligible daters” competing in a pageant-like competition to win the heart of a mystery suitor, whose identity is hidden from them. At the end of the 60-minute show, a proposal is promised.

But what is this new dating show all about? And is there really going to be a proposal every episode? Keep scrolling to learn everything there is to know about the new series.

The Proposal premieres Monday, June 18 at 10 p.m. ET on ABC.

Photo credit: ABC

The Format

It won’t be totally clear how The Proposal goes down until the first episode airs, but according to ABC, each hour of the new show will be formatted relatively the same.

The “daters,” who can be male or female, will be whittled down one by one in each round of the pageant-like show, which has four rounds.

In the first round, daters will be judged based on their ability to make a first impression to their mystery suitor. The second round focuses on the superficial more than anything with a beachwear round, while the third pits the contestants against their mystery suitors “most pressing romantic questions.”

Narrowing down the finalists in the final round will require the seal of approval from a trusted family member.

The Host

To make the transition from rose ceremony to proposal pageant a little easier, Bachelor alum Jesse Palmer has been brought on to host the show.

The 39-year-old found love (temporarily) as the bachelor in season 5, leaving behind his career as an NFL quarterback for the fame of television.

In addition to his time in Bachelor Nation, Palmer has contributed to ABC’s Good Morning America and is the host of Daily Mail TV. He proved to be pretty charming during his time on The Bachelor, but we’ll have to see if he can bring that same charisma to The Proposal stage.

The Proposal

Can there really be a proposal during every episode of The Proposal?

That’s what ABC appears to be promising in their promotional materials. As the episode draws to a close, the final two contestants will meet their suitor face-to-face, according to ABC, after which they will “present a romantic proposal of their choice.”

Host Palmer expanded on what appears to be some pretty serious wiggle room in the show’s premise during an interview with E!.

“It could literally run the gamut. You can have a sexy night in the fantasy suite You could have a full-blown down on one knee, open a ring box kind of thing,” Palmer explained. “It’s completely up to the two finalists proposing to the mystery man or woman that’s not revealed to them at the very end.” 

 

Another Bachelor Connection

Speaking of Fleiss, did you know he’s behind The Proposal too?

The original creator of The Bachelor, and by extension its many spin-offs, is also the mastermind of ABC’s new series.

And the idea behind the new show is pretty close to Fleiss’ first major network success, Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire?, which aired on Fox in 2000 and featured women competing in a pageant-style competition for the heart of a man billed as a rich guy with a golden personality. (Whether he was either is up for debate, however, after the show aired and both his smaller-than-advertised fortune and allegedly abusive past came into the spotlight.)

What The Host Says

Palmer has given interested viewers a peek behind the scenes during an interview with E! News, opening up about how the show differs from the Bachelor Nation franchise.

“You’re speeding up the timeline to 60 minutes and … there’s an audience watching you, there’s a man or woman standing feet away that you can’t even see, and you have to do some serious soul-searching, and I think the only way possible in order to have a good ending and one you’re comfortable with is to be yourself and try to listen to what’s inside. It sounds easy, but having been on a show like this, it can be challenging, too,” he said.

“Viewers at home don’t have to wait three months to go the journey before seeing a proposal or seeing a result. On this show, at the end of every episode, there’s going to be that moment, that proposal. People don’t have to wait for it.”

 

Is This The End of Bachelor in Paradise?

With The Proposal premiering in June, Bachelor Nation fans eagerly awaiting the premiere date for a new season of Bachelor in Paradise feared that ABC was replacing the show with the new series.

After all, Bachelor in Paradise found some serious controversy last summer when contestants Corinne Olympios and DeMario Jackson were embroiled in scandal after engaging in sexual conduct on camera while visibly intoxicated. An independent investigation of what went down found no instances of wrongdoing on anyone’s part, but the incident reportedly influenced Bachelor producers to place stricter limits on contestants’ alcohol consumption. 

But don’t worry, BiP fans! The new season of the summer Bachelor Nation show is currently filming, and Fleiss confirmed on Twitter that both shows will be airing on ABC this summer.

When It Airs

Break out your bottles of wine, because Mondays are about to be a superblock of reality dating content.

The Proposal is scheduled to air on ABC Mondays at 10 p.m. ET, immediately following two-hour episodes of The Bachelorette, during which Becca Kufrin searches for love.

“I propose we enjoy 3 hours of history-making, high-quality television tonight! #TheProposal #TheBachelorette” the man behind Bachelor Nation Mike Fleiss tweeted prior to the premiere.

 

How to Watch

If you can’t tune in to The Proposal live on ABC at 10 p.m. ET, there are a few other ways to watch it. 

Episodes will be posted following their live airing on ABC.com and the ABC app, and live streaming options are available on the app as well.

Don’t miss The Proposal, premiering Monday, June 18 at 10 p.m. ET on ABC.