- Lea Cayanan, a familiar face from a previous season of “The Bachelorette,” is now competing for Joey Graziadei’s heart on “The Bachelor.”
- Lea received a special advantage from producers at the “After the Final Rose” special, allowing her to “steal” a one-on-one date from another woman.
- Lea decided to sacrifice her advantage and burn the card, impressing Joey and earning the coveted first impression rose.
Additional Coverage:
- What to know about Lea Cayanan, the ‘Bachelor’ contestant who nabbed the first impression rose after throwing away her secret advantage (businessinsider.com)
Joey Graziadei’s season of “The Bachelor” premiered on Monday, and amongst the 32 women competing for his heart, there was one familiar face. Lea Cayanan, a 23-year-old from Hawaii, had previously met Joey during the “After the Final Rose” special in 2023. Lea was present in the audience during Charity Lawson’s season finale of “The Bachelorette,” where Joey and Dotun Olubeko were the finalists. Ultimately, Charity chose Dotun, and Joey was later announced as the next Bachelor.
Lea, whose name is pronounced “Leia” like the “Star Wars” princess, is an account manager from Waipahu, Hawaii. Her bio on ABC’s website reveals that she enjoys painting, hiking, being by the ocean, and is passionate about cliff-diving. Additionally, she plays the flute. Lea takes romantic relationships seriously and is looking for a committed partnership filled with big romantic gestures.
Lea and Joey’s first meeting occurred during the “After the Final Rose” special, where Joey was introduced as the upcoming Bachelor. Lea was chosen from the audience and got the chance to exchange greetings with Joey. She also received a special envelope with a secret advantage from the show’s producers. This advantage allowed her to “steal” a one-on-one date from another woman at any point in the season until the “Hometown” dates.
Upon learning of her advantage, Lea became emotional and realized that using it could create tension between her and the other contestants, as well as impact Joey’s relationships. She decided to get rid of her advantage and threw the card into the fire, which was met with cheers and applause from the other women in the house.
Joey was impressed by Lea’s choice to burn her advantage. He considered her position to be the hardest that night and admired how she handled it with grace. This conversation with Lea made Joey want to know her better, leading him to give her the coveted first impression rose. He believed her actions truly revealed her character and wanted to convey that he was sincerely interested in getting to know her as a person.
New episodes of season 28 of “The Bachelor” premiere on Mondays.