Ben Higgins Sounds Off on Becca and Amber Returning, That Chicken Enthusiast and All the Laurens on The Bachelor

ABC's new Bachelor sounds off on a few of the headline-making women taking part in his season when it kicks off on Monday, Jan. 4

By Tierney Bricker Dec 10, 2015 9:00 PMTags
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Why did the chicken enthusiast cross the road? To be on The Bachelor!

When Ben Higgins' 28 ladies were revealed earlier this week, there were a few noteworthy contestants. Becca and Amber, who both appeared on Chris Soules' season of The Bachelor, decided to return for a chance to win over the latest Bachelor, joining a pair of identical twins, a whole bunch of Laurens, and, of course, a chicken enthusiast. Yes, really, a contestant named Tiara listed her occupation as "chicken enthusiast." 

So what was Ben's reaction to Tiara's job? 

"[Laughs.] I think she can explain that one. She just loves chicken and I think through a lot of her life, chickens have played a big role in it," the Bachelor told reporters on Thursday during a conference call, before comparing her love of chickens to the love anyone would have for a pet, saying, "We've had a dog lover I think before, I think a cat lover at some point, so why not a chicken lover?"

ABC

As for how he felt about not one but two of Chris' ladies returning to the show, including runner-up Becca, Ben admitted he was a little "shocked" to see them on the first night, but stressed he had "no preconceived notions" about either woman as he really didn't watch last season after learning he would be on The Bachelorette

But did he know either woman before they stepped out of the limo on the first night? 

"The only way I knew them was this is a family and I knew of them," Ben said. "Obviously, I had seen bits and pieces of Chris' season, not the season as a total, but I didn't know a lot about them. When they came on was I shocked? Yeah, I think so. Shocked in the sense that...that first night, when every woman showed up at that mansion, just one after another I found myself going, 'Thank you.' Because it's really crazy to see every woman show up at this place and I felt the same way about Becca and Amber."

ABC

Aside from a chicken lover and two familiar faces, Ben also had to deal with meeting four Laurens in one night, and he admitted it was hard keeping track of all of them at first. 

"[Laughs.] That's not always easy. If we're talking challenges of being the Bachelor, I think on that first night getting all the names and memory…I really wanted to be able to speak to everybody and say their names so they knew I was engaged, But when you throw in that many Laurens and that many people, it's tough! It's not easy!"

And if meeting four Laurens wasn't enough, Ben also had to handle identical twins, Haley and Emily, stepping out of a limo together, and while their entrance "threw" Ben off a little bit, he said, "When I got to sit down with both of these twins, they're just two incredible women; they're just two individuals who I have a lot of respect for. In my eyes, they're two separate women."

The Bachelor premieres Monday, Jan. 4 at 8 p.m. on ABC.