Grant Ellis is getting a real taste of The Bachelor life.
The premiere of the reality show’s 29th season is in the books as Ellis met the 25 women vying for his love on the Jan. 27 episode of the ABC reality show.
While a llama named Linda may have tried to overshadow the contestants, the pro basketball player turned day trader got busy getting to know the women as best he could, under the circumstances. That included one-on-one time with the ladies — whenever they could grab it — and a lot of kissing.
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Once the initial intros were done, Ellis kissed nearly one-third of the women as he got to know them inside the mansion, by our count. Those are the kisses that made it on air; there may have been smooches that were cut.
First was Allyshia, right after she announced to the other women, “I don’t kiss on the first date.” She and Ellis shared a moment bonding over The Notebook.
All the other women freaked out when they saw Ellis and Allyshia kissing, but she was just the first of many. He also locked lips with Juliana, Litia, Alexe, Vicky, Zoe, Natalie and Rose. Natalie’s kiss was a quick peck, but the others were extended smooch sessions.
So how does Ellis’s night one kiss count stack up to seasons past? Suzana Somers, who tracks Bachelor franchise data on Instagram, said last year that Joey Graziadei, the star of the 28th season, had tied the record for the most women kissed on the first night of the show, with seven. Season 27 lead Zach Shallcross held the record.
That puts Ellis as the new titleholder. That short and sweet peck with Natalie put him over the top.
For the record, one lucky lady got two kisses. When Ellis gave out the first impression rose to Alexe, the pair enjoyed a second kiss-a-thon by the fire. Of note: The first impression rose has extra significance this season. It means that not only does Alexe move into the mansion, but she also gets the first one-on-one date with Ellis.
Ellis also said he would have kissed Carolina. But, alas, she started crying, so it killed the romantic mood.
The show wrapped with a preview of the season ahead that showed the 31-year-old kissing many more of the women he missed in Episode 1, including Bailey. Let the games begin.
The Bachelor airs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
