Matt James Named First Black Lead Of ‘The Bachelor’

“The Bachelor” franchise has cast just one Black lead in 18 years, but ABC announced Friday that will be changing in 2021: Matt James, best known as the BFF of Tyler Cameron from “Bachelorette” Season 15, will be the next male lead.

“It’s an honor,” James told “Good Morning America.” “I’m just going to lean into myself and how my mom raised me, and hopefully when people invite me into their homes on Monday night they’re going to see that I’m not much different from them and they see that diverse love stories are beautiful.”

The announcement comes just four days after fans launched a petition calling for ABC to name a Black Bachelor for the upcoming season. It quickly racked up tens of thousands of signatures and endorsements from popular “Bachelor” alums including Rachel Lindsay, Kaitlyn Bristowe and Nick Viall.

“We’re glad ABC has done the right thing and cast a black lead for the next season of The Bachelor,” the organizers of the Bachelor Diversity campaign said in a statement to HuffPost. “While we’re thrilled for that first step, we still plan to hold ABC accountable to make sure his representation is handled responsibly. We want to continue seeing greater BIPOC representation within the The Bachelor franchise, both on and off camera — as well as providing the resources and support they need during the show and in its aftermath. There’s plenty more work to do, but this is a start.”