Jenn Tran, Star of ‘Bachelorette’ Season 21: What You Need to Know

There’s a new Bachelorette in the mansion.

Jenn Tran is the star of Season 21 of “The Bachelorette,” which premieres tonight on ABC.

The 26-year-old’s historic role in the franchise was announced in March during the finale of Joey Graziadei’s “Bachelor” season.

Tran finished in fifth place during the series’ 28th season.

She told People that her season of “The Bachelorette” was “the best two months of my life.”

“I find it so strange that this crazy journey happened, and I’m just so excited to be able to watch it back,” she added.

Here’s everything you need to know about Jenn Tran.

Tran is from New Jersey.

Tran was born and raised in Hillsdale, New Jersey.

She has an older brother, James. They were raised by their parents, who are Vietnamese immigrants.

She played basketball and lacrosse in high school. She graduated in 2016.

Tran attended the University of Pittsburgh for two years before transferring to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she was a sorority member and majored in molecular biology. She graduated in 2020 with her bachelor’s degree.

The reality star was living in Miami, Florida, when she was cast for “The Bachelor.”

Tran is a PA student.

Tran is studying to become a physician assistant at Barry University in Miami.

In February, she revealed that she had asked her academic advisor for permission to compete on ‘The Bachelor.’

“No, I didn’t drop out of school,” she said in an Instagram video. “I didn’t know how my PA school would look at me. I was so incredibly lucky because they were so supportive. Obviously, we had to jump through a lot of hoops to make it all work.”

“I’ve been really lucky and I can’t thank them enough for letting me do this and for being so supportive and accepting of me,” she added.

Tran is the first Asian Bachelorette.

Tran makes history as the first Asian American to star on “The Bachelorette.”

However, her historic casting has led to some fans sending hateful messages to Tran.

“I won’t say it’s all positive, because racism still exists,” she told People ahead of her premiere episode. “I’ve gotten a lot of hate mail, but then I have so many people who are so grateful to see someone like me on their screen. I feel so grateful and honored that I get to do that for people, because growing up, I never had that. I get to be the role model that I always wanted to be when I was a little girl.”

She added: “I got announced and then I went straight to filming. I didn’t have my phone on me the whole time, so I had no idea what the world was saying until I got back from this amazing experience. I was so excited and so hopeful, and then I went online and read a billion people’s opinions about everything. It was really disappointing.”

Tran also told Glamour that she was disappointed with the lack of Asian men on her season.

“Asian men haven’t always seen themselves in this position, and I hope that with me and (participant) Thomas N. being there, that together we can inspire other Asian men to realize that they can do this too if they want to,” she said.

Tran wasn’t the producers’ first choice to play the role of Bachelorette.

Maria Georgas and Daisy Kent, who both also competed on season 28 of “The Bachelor,” were approached to become the Bachelorette for season 21.

Georgas told Alex Cooper’s podcast “Call Her Daddy” that she “was offered the part” and “it was mine until I said it wasn’t.”

“It became so overwhelming that I had to decline. I just wasn’t ready for it,” Georgas added.

Kent, the runner-up on Graziadei’s season, also turned down a role on “The Bachelorette.”

“It’s not that I’m not ready to date, it’s that I wasn’t ready for that particular thing,” she said on Nick Viall’s podcast. “And I think when I left the show and did the show, I didn’t realize how big it was, if that makes sense. I think right now I just want to live and be happy. I’m always going to take chances, but I think this particular opportunity wasn’t right for me at this time.”

Tran has already given a sneak peek at the finale of her ‘Bachelorette’ movie.

“I’m really happy with the ending, and I’m really happy with the way everything turned out,” Tran told People of her season of “The Bachelorette,” which is expected to air in September.

“I learned so much every day that I was there (figuring out) about myself and what I wanted in a relationship. There was so much growth,” she said.

Season 21 of “The Bachelorette” premieres July 8 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.