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From an exciting new mansion to an unprecedented travel twist, The Bachelorette‘s Season 21 premiere was full of surprises — including Jenn Tran’s decision to only kiss one man.
Longtime members of Bachelor Nation know that Night 1 is often full of first impression pecks, serious smooches, and the occasional full-on make-out session. But as Tran’s first official night on Bachelorette duty progressed, she decided she wanted to save her first kiss for the right moment and the right guy.
“Going into that first night, I didn’t really have a plan, but I’ve seen the show a couple times and I’ve seen how many people kiss,” Tran told Decider in a Zoom interview ahead of her premiere. “I think that for me, a first kiss means a lot. It takes a lot for me to be affectionate with somebody and to get to that level. So I knew in the back of my head that I wasn’t going to kiss anybody unless I really felt that spark and felt that connection and felt that the relationship could go to that level that night.”
Tran’s first (and only!) kiss of the night went to Sam McKinney, a 27-year-old contractor from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, who accepted her first impression rose shortly before the first rose ceremony.
On Night 1, Sam M. walked up to Tran and asked her to picture her life 50 years from now, waking up on a Saturday morning to him cooking breakfast and asking — with two shots in his hands — “Do you know what time it is?” The “shot o’clock” reference was a smooth nod to Jenn’s Bachelor Season 28 finale speech, and though Sam M. was incredibly naive to think he’d be the only guy making his first impression with a shots joke, he did snag the rose, so he clearly did something right!
Sam was also the first to steal Tran for a second after her Night 1 welcome toast, and after the two bonded over their desire for a “ferocious” and “reckless” love, Tran told cameras she felt there was an “undeniable connection” between them. Later in the evening, she took Sam aside with first impression rose in hand.
“I feel like there has been something there, and I can’t stop thinking about you all night,” Tran shared. “I don’t always pick the right men, but there is something in my gut that’s just telling me there’s something here. And I’m really excited about it and I’m really excited to get to know you a lot more. I can’t stop thinking about you.”
After Sam accepted the first impression rose, Tran went in for the kiss, which turned into a “feral” smooching session that they both admitted they “could get used to.”
When looking back on her first kiss with Decider, Tran said, “I didn’t know how many people I was going to kiss, but I was happy with myself for following my gut and for really just listening to myself.” Later in our interview, Tran also revealed that her celebrity crushes are Shawn Mendes and Chris Evans, and with Sam M’s chiseled jaw, facial hair, and “Top Gun 3” movie star good looks, it makes sense that he made quite the first impression.
“…For me, a first kiss means a lot. It takes a lot for me to be affectionate with somebody and to get to that level. So I knew in the back of my head that I wasn’t going to kiss anybody unless I really felt that spark…”
Jenn Tran, The Bachelorette
We’ll have to wait and see who gets Tran’s second kiss — and if Sam M. makes it to the end of Tran’s journey or not — but whatever happens, the Season 21 lead teased a surprising season ahead.
“It’s a surprise for sure. It’s definitely not something that I could have imagined was going to happen. But I’m very happy with the way everything panned out through the journey. And I’m very excited for it all to come to light,” she said, promising a lot of twists and turns. “I was constantly surprised every day. And I was on the edge of my seat a lot of the time.”
New episodes of The Bachelorette Season 21 premiere Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC with next-day streaming on Hulu. Be sure to read Decider’s pre-premiere interview with Jenn Tran for a preview of the season ahead.
