A source told ET on Friday that producers are zoning in on Underwood and Jason Tartick.
Colton Underwood may become our next Bachelor, but don't expect Tia Booth to be chasing him down to the mansion.
A source told ET on Friday that the 26-year-old former NFL player was one of Bachelor producers' final picks to be the franchise's next lead, but according to Booth, Underwood's just not in the right place.
"I don't know that he's ready," she told ET's Lauren Zima at the season finale taping of Bachelor in Paradise on Tuesday. "I don't."
Of course, Underwood being considered as the next Bachelor is a little spoiler for those watching Bachelor in Paradise. He and Booth are currently in a relationship on the Bachelor spinoff, though promos for next week's episodes appear to tease the pair's breakup.
Underwood and Booth's romance has been a topic of conversation since his appearance on Becca Kufrin's season of The Bachelorette, as he and Booth shared a romantic weekend together before the show. They both told Kufrin that their feelings were in the past, but Booth returned after Underwood's hometown date to tell Kufrin she still has feelings for him. After going back and forth for a few episodes, they rekindled their romance on Paradise.
"I mean, it was just about two months ago that I was telling him that he really needs to figure himself out before he can fully be with someone else," Booth told ET, adding that she's pulling for Jason Tartick instead. "If there's a chance that Colton is the Bachelor, I would hope that he is fully ready for that experience knowing that he wants to be engaged at the end of it."
Underwood's possible appointment as Bachelor was a hot topic among the rest of the Paradise cast, who, for the most part, were hoping either Tartick or Blake Horstmann would earn the spot. According to ET's source, Tartick is still in the running, but at this point, Horstmann is the least likely pick for producers.
Here's what the rest of Bachelor Nation thinks:
Bibiana Julian: "I think he has potential. He's definitely one of the strongest contenders, right, but my heart is with Blake."
Venmo John: "I think Colton's an option. Honestly, I'm on Team Blake right now. I think Blake knows how to be vulnerable, I think he moves his emotions along quickly and I'd be excited to see Blake up there."
Chris Randone: "Colton is a great guy, he would be a great catch and if he does become the potential Bachelor, he's got my support. There's 28 girls that would be very lucky to walk into that mansion and be in the presence of him, because he will treat every single woman with the utmost respect.
"I just feel like Blake had it really rough at the end. He was so invested emotionally and Blake's heart was broken, there's no doubt about it, as was Jason and Colton's as well, but Blake was the last man there to get his heart broken and I think that should turn into him having a chance for redemption and finding someone that he could fall in love with."
Krystal Nielson: "I think Colton definitely has a running for the Bachelor, but I'm feeling Blake or Jason."
Jordan Kimball: "I think that Colton's a great candidate for the Bachelor. I hope that he can ask himself that question before, you know, if he were given that opportunity to take that on [and] really figure out if he's ready. Because obviously whenever he was in Paradise and Becca came in, he wasn't ready for that. And then he tried things with Tia, but it was still tarnished by that, so he needs just to eliminate all factors and really ask himself if he's ready.
"I don't think his intentions on The Bachelorette were so true, and then you saw in Paradise, I really saw him with a heavy heart trying to work on how things were going to end up with Tia. It was a struggle every day to watch him question it, and it's a tough experience. But I think that he's more ready than ever."
Grocery Store Joe: "I think he would be a great Bachelor. Do I think it's going to happen? I have no clue. I don't know who they're going to pick."
Find out what Underwood told ET about possibly taking on the role in the video below, and let us know what you think at ET's Bachelor Nation Facebook group here.
Bachelor in Paradise airs Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.
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