When Katie Thurston and Blake Moynes met in The Bachelorette Season 17 Week 4, the new lead confirmed she briefly spoke with the contestant before filming. But apparently, the conversation didn’t exactly leave a lasting first impression. Recently, Katie revealed how she really felt when Blake slid into her DMs ahead of The Bachelorette 2021 — here’s what went down.
Who is Blake Moynes to Katie Thurston from ‘The Bachelorette’ 2021?
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In case you need a refresher, Blake was originally from Tayshia Adams and Clare Crawley’s season of The Bachelorette. Meanwhile, Katie was on Matt James’ season of The Bachelor. Then in The Bachelorette Season 17 Episode 4, Katie briefly explained their connection ahead of filming.
“Obviously, I have been Blake on Tayshia’s season,” Katie said. “In fact, Blake and I have talked through the DMs. Blake reached out to commend me for my bold personality.”
Eventually, Katie asked Blake to join her Bachelorette cast. Now, the contestant will move into the house and meet the other men in week 5. But according to the previews, Blake’s arrival will cause some drama.
That said, Bachelor Nation fans will also get to experience some romance because Katie and Blake will go on a one-on-one date to deepen their relationship. So viewers will see whether sparks fly in the July 5 episode of The Bachelorette.
Katie Thurston shares her first impression of Blake Moynes before ‘The Bachelorette’ Season 17
Whether Katie and Blake hit it off in The Bachelorette Week 5, it seems the contestant didn’t make much of an impression before filming. In the June 30 episode of The Viall Files, Katie opened up about Blake’s return to the franchise.
At first, Katie admitted she would only have let Blake and Dr. Joe Park stay on her Bachelorette season. But even so, she wasn’t exactly “hoping” to see the contestants in week 4.
“Those are two that I think would be decent matches for me,” Katie said. “Not to be shady, but if it was anyone else, they would go home on the spot.”
Then Katie shared what happened when Blake reached out on Instagram, revealing he didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. But as a result, Katie wasn’t interested in pursuing anything more.
“They message the girl once they get booted off the show. They reach out, and that’s all that Blake really did,” Katie said. “So I didn’t take him seriously. It was like, yeah, he’s just doing the same thing that everyone else is doing. Whatever. That was it.”
She later added, “He wasn’t very obvious with his intentions, and we brought that up. I was like, ‘I didn’t even know you were interested in me.’ He just very casually tested the waters but didn’t try too hard. I wasn’t interested.”
Why Blake Moynes chose to meet Katie Thurston in ‘The Bachelorette’ 2021
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Katie’s comments make it seem like her first impression of Blake wasn’t anything special. So naturally, many Bachelorette fans have been wondering what inspired Blake to show up and join the cast. Luckily, Blake recently explained the situation on the Click Bait podcast.
Blake revealed he first reached out after The Bachelor Season 25 premiere. The contestant claimed he applauded Katie for her confidence. But he admitted their exchanges stopped quickly after.
“When I reached out that first time after the first episode, her responses were very cold back. So she was nice, but she didn’t open up for dialogue in any way,” Blake said of Katie. “It was shut down right then and there. It was kind of left alone.”
Blake also shared that he put Katie at the back of his mind and looked toward the possibility of Bachelor in Paradise Season 7. But once Katie was announced as the next bachelorette, Blake realized he wanted to meet her and see what could happen.
“I think we’re very alike. What if there’s a crazy romance there on top of how well we get along? This could be something crazy. That’s what I was basing it off of,” Blake said. “And I kind of pulled the trigger. Then things spiraled out of control.”
Whatever happens next, Bachelorette fans will just have to watch Blake and Katie’s love story unfold. But it certainly seems like the first impression isn’t everything.
The Bachelorette Season 17 airs Monday nights on ABC.