If you’ve spent more than five minutes on TikTok lately, you’ve seen her. The red lipstick. The "beast, beauty, brains" mantra. The absolute refusal to take a troll's nonsense lying down. Ilona Maher didn't just win a bronze medal in Paris; she basically won the internet. And naturally, the second she stepped off that rugby pitch and onto the Dancing with the Stars floor, the collective internet hive mind had one single, solitary thought: is ilona the next bachelorette?
It makes sense, right? She’s funny. She’s single (mostly, it’s complicated). She’s exactly the kind of "disruptor" a franchise like The Bachelor needs after years of cookie-cutter leads. But honestly, the answer to whether she's actually going to be handing out roses in 2026 is a lot more "it’s complicated" than "here is your final rose."
The TikTok That Set the World on Fire
The rumors didn't just come out of thin air. We can actually point to the exact moment the fire started. It was a video featuring Joey Graziadei—the Bachelor king himself—giving Ilona a "crash course" in rose ceremony etiquette.
In the clip, Joey is trying to be all professional and mentor-like, and Ilona? She’s being Ilona. She looked at the camera and straight-up told her hypothetical suitors, "I don’t like all of you." When Joey tried to get her to let them down easy, she pivoted to, "You’re not all ugly, but some of you aren't my type."
It was pure gold. It was also, according to Ilona’s own caption, a joke. She literally wrote that Joey was teaching her because "y’all keep spreading rumors." But you know how the internet is. You give people an inch of a joke, and they’ve already booked the flights to a tropical resort for filming.
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Why Taylor Frankie Paul Changes Everything
Here is where the "Ilona for Bachelorette" dream hits a bit of a reality check. If you’re looking for the actual Bachelorette for the upcoming Season 22 in 2026, the spot is already taken.
ABC went rogue. In a move that shocked basically everyone in Bachelor Nation, they reached outside the franchise and tapped Taylor Frankie Paul from The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. The season is already scheduled to premiere on March 22, 2026.
So, for everyone asking is ilona the next bachelorette for the immediate future? The technical answer is no. Taylor is currently the one navigating the "MomTok" drama turned dating show chaos. This doesn't mean Ilona won't ever do it, but she definitely isn't the one filming right now.
The Olympic Sized Conflict
There is also the whole "professional athlete" thing. While Ilona had a blast on DWTS and finished as a runner-up in late 2024, her life is still very much anchored in rugby. She’s been busy. 2025 was a whirlwind of signing with the Bristol Bears in England, playing in the Women’s Rugby World Cup, and even winning an ESPY for "Breakthrough Athlete."
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Rugby players don't exactly have three months to go "off-grid" in a mansion to find a husband.
What Ilona Actually Said (Not the Social Media Version)
When she isn't joking around with Joey or poking fun at trolls on Instagram, Ilona has been somewhat cautious about the idea. On Good Morning America, she did give the fans a "yes" of sorts, saying, "I will date 30 men for America if that's what you want to see."
But in deeper interviews, like with PureWow, she showed a little more hesitation. She’s worried about "the edit." Everyone who watches the show knows that production can turn a hero into a villain in about four seconds of clever cutting. Ilona is fiercely authentic. She’s built a brand on being real. Giving that control over to a reality TV producer is a massive risk for someone who has worked so hard to be a positive role model.
The Problem With Casting
Honestly, the biggest hurdle isn't Ilona; it’s the men. Fans on Reddit have been vocal about this: would ABC actually find 30 guys who can handle a woman who is physically stronger, more famous, and arguably funnier than they are?
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The fear is that the show would revert to its old habits—casting "bros" who might be intimidated by her or, worse, production trying to "soften" her image to fit the Bachelorette mold. Nobody wants to see Ilona Maher in a "boring curtain" role. We want the girl who claps back at people calling her "pregnant" when she's just living in a normal body.
What’s Next for the Bronze Medalist?
Even if she isn't the Bachelorette this year, Ilona isn't going anywhere. She’s currently leaning into her role as a body-positivity icon. Just this week in early 2026, she’s been all over the news for her response to body-shaming trolls, using a plum-colored dress to prove a point.
She also just launched a new podcast with her sisters, which seems more her speed anyway. It’s unfiltered, it’s funny, and she doesn't have to wait for a rose to tell someone they’re being a "vibe killer."
The Reality Reality
- The 2026 Lead: Taylor Frankie Paul is the confirmed Bachelorette for Season 22.
- The Casting Status: Ilona has not been officially cast, nor are there active talks for Season 23 yet.
- The Probability: High for a future "Celebrity Bachelorette" season, but low for a standard cycle due to her training schedule.
If you’re waiting to see Ilona on your screen again, keep an eye on her social media and her podcast. She’s clearly enjoying the "booked and busy" life without the constraints of a reality TV contract. If the franchise ever decides to do a massive overhaul and actually values her brand of "beast, beauty, brains," then maybe we'll see her at the mansion. Until then, she’s busy being the queen of TikTok and the rugby pitch.
Actionable Insights:
If you want to support Ilona’s journey beyond the dating show rumors, the best move is to follow her "unfiltered" podcast with her sisters for the real tea. For those strictly interested in The Bachelorette, set your calendars for March 22, 2026, to see how the Taylor Frankie Paul experiment pans out, as it will likely dictate if ABC continues to cast big-name influencers like Ilona in the future.