ABC loves to cross-promote their shows, often having the cast appear on daytime TV.
So it was no surprise that Jenn Tran made an appearance on LIVE with Kelly and Mark ahead of The Bachelorette’s Season 21 premiere.
They probably didn’t expect Jenn to throw a little shade at Kelly Ripa while chatting with Kelly and Mark.
Jenn is the first Asian-American The Bachelorette star and that’s what she was supposed to talk about while making her morning show appearance.
After all, her casting is a huge deal for the franchise, which has been criticized heavily for seemingly ignoring casting minority stars for much of its run.
But when Kelly questioned Jenn’s decision to find love on reality TV, things got a little bit uncomfortable.
Jenn Tran takes aim at Kelly Ripa with some shade
While talking about her reasons for becoming The Bachelorette, Kelly Ripa questioned Jenn.
She asked, “You’re drop dead gorgeous. You could meet anybody anywhere, at any time. Why, why, why?”
Jenn shot back, “I knew this was coming. I mean, is Hinge any better?”
The exchange simmered down a bit before Jenn made her point with Kelly. She asked. “I have a question: Where did you meet your husband?”
Those who follow LIVE or who have long-watched soaps know that Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos met on the set of All My Children. So, while it wasn’t on a reality TV show geared toward finding love, it was still while they were filming a television show.
“I met my husband at work,” Kelly fired back.
Jenn responded, “On TV, no?”
But that didn’t sit well with Kelly, who rallied by saying, “No, those are not the same. Those are not the same. We were both professionals. Are you acting on your show? I didn’t marry Mateo Santos, I married Mark Consuelos.”
The back and forth between the women seemed to have the audience confused as this verbal tennis match wasn’t expected at all and seemed a bit confrontational for no reason.
Why was Kelly grilling Jenn about her choice to film in this manner? She was never this critical of Joey Graziadei for his role on The Bachelor.
Jenn explains her plans to finish PA school
As her season of The Bachelorette, star Jenn Tran is a very busy woman. With filming behind her, now she has to promote the ABC hit as it airs every Monday night.
While she explained that she previously planned to return to PA school this summer to finish her studies and become a physician’s assistant, those dreams have been put on hold again.
However, she assured fans that she’s not turned her back on plans to become a PA. It’s just been pushed back a bit due to her very busy schedule.
Jenn dispelled rumors among The Bachelorette fans that she had quit when she was offered her leading role.
It doesn’t look like she’ll be following in the footsteps of many other Bachelor Nation stars who changed career paths after finding fame, only to use their newfound social media followings to become influencers.
The Bachelorette Season 21 premieres on Monday, July 8 at 8/7c on ABC.