New 'Bachelor' Ben Flajnik clears up Jennifer Love Hewitt rumors
You know what that means, folks. Ahead of the shows Jan. 2 premiere, its time for Ben to start doing the media rounds, attempting to remain opaque while insisting hes really happy with [his] decision in doing the show."
On Wednesday morning, the Josh Groban lookalike jumped on the phone with a handful of journalists, fielding questions about the upcoming season. As ever, the 28-year-old gave off his trademark nonchalant vibe at times even coming across as blase about his journey on the show. (He also seemed to be driving, as the sounds of turn signals and honking horns could be heard intermittently in the background of the call.)
Heading into the season, Flajnik said, he didnt reach out to any former Bachelor contestants because he wanted to make the experience his own.
I spoke to friends and family more than the Bachelor family. I tried to separate myself from the whole Hollywood, L.A. thing, he said.
Still, hes already noticing the effect his newfound celebrity is having on his business a facility where he produces wine in Northern California.
Weve always made really nice wines, and the majority of the purchases because of the show are novelty purchases one bottle at a time, he acknowledged. We know theyre not coming from serious wine consumers. We try to differentiate business from Bac! helor-re lated things, because we do take our business and our wines very seriously.
One of those potential customers? Jennifer Love Hewitt. Before Flajnik was officially named the newest Bachelor in September, rumors surfaced that he and the actress had had a brief romantic dalliance. On the call, Flajnik elaborated on the rumors by saying Hewitt had reached out him and said she wanted to visit his winery with her friends.
So my business partners and I showed them around and we all went to dinner and talked about life and the experience, he said. Shes a nice girl, but it was right in the middle of the time when I was deciding if I was going to be the Bachelor or not. Ending up with a Hollywood celebrity is not something that I ever imagined doing.
Flajnik ultimately decided to take part in the show despite its horrible track record with romances. Just this month, couple Ali Fedotowsky and Roberto Martinez became the latest pair to split post-show.
I dont know Roberto and Ali personally, but its hard, because relationships end whether youre on a TV show or not, he said. For me, Im an opportunist and an optimist. I feel like you can find someone in any way, shape or form, and it doesnt matter if its on a TV show or on an airplane. It comes in many forms.
Lets see how that works out for ya, Ben.
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