Jenn Tran’s ‘Bachelorette’ finale ended with broken engagement and controversy

Those quotes proved more prophetic than even Tran knew when the live finale of “The Bachelorette” aired Tuesday night. Though the first Asian Bachelorette had teased that her season would involve something never before done in the show’s history — which turned out to be her proposing to her final pick, Devin Strader — that historic first was quickly overshadowed by the raw heartbreak that unfolded onstage when Tran revealed to a live audience that the two had called off their engagement a month earlier.

Trans’s proposal to Strader was a historic first

The original twist at the end of Tran’s season was foretold in a teaser, when Tran told the show’s host, Jesse Palmer, “I’m done letting men define my relationships.”

“No Bachelorette has ever done this before,” Palmer says. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

Although the teaser seemed to suggest that Tran would choose to end her journey alone, that turned out not to be true. Instead, she surprised Strader by beating him to the punch and proposing first.

“I love you so much, Devin. But I can’t let you ask me to marry you,” Tran began. “I’ve decided to choose myself for this journey. And the best version of myself is when I’m with you. I’m strong on my own, but I know we’re stronger together.”

“Devin, I want to fight for you every single day,” she continued. “I want to help you carry your burdens. I want to put a smile on your face, and honestly, I just don’t want to live without you. You’re everything I ever dreamed of, but never knew I could have. I want to wake up every single day and choose you for the rest of my life, today and every single day. Baby, I want to grow old with you.”

With that, she presented Strader with a ring. He then got down on one knee and proposed to Tran as well, flashing the obligatory Neil Lane ring.

And they lived happily ever after, right? Wrong.

Her initial happy ending was overshadowed by heartbreak when Tran revealed that she and Strader had broken up

The format of “The Bachelorette”‘s live finale made things extra awkward for the star. Before Tran’s proposal scene was shown, Jesse Palmer invited the Bachelorette onstage to explain where her relationship stands today.

Tran revealed that after they got engaged in Hawaii, Strader broke things off several months later in a 15-minute phone call in August.

“He basically said he didn’t love me anymore and didn’t feel the same way anymore,” Tran said, adding that Strader told her he never wanted to get engaged and refused to go to couples counseling. Days later, instead of mourning a broken engagement, Tran said he started following former “Bachelor” contestant (and almost Bachelorette) Maria Georgas on Instagram and went clubbing with fellow contestant Jeremy.

Strader, for his part, was somewhat apologetic and did not deny Tran’s claims. “Obviously I disappointed you, and I can’t say anything else,” he said when he was brought onstage to face his ex-fiancée. “Everything I felt for you was real.”

Forcing the two to rewatch their proposal scene in front of a live audience angered fans

After the star couple officially exploded on stage, the show’s producers decided to play footage of their historic engagement moment.

After apologizing on behalf of the show and fans that her journey didn’t have the happy ending she’d hoped for, Palmer praised Tran for the strength she showed in her proposal, adding that no one could take that historic moment away from her.

“I know you haven’t seen it yet. What do you think? Should we all watch it together?” Palmer asked.

“Do I have a choice?” Tran replied, sobbing.

Fans and fellow Bachelor Nation members expressed their disappointment with ABC’s treatment of its star during the finale, with many criticizing the decision to force Tran to watch the proposal live on stage, while sitting next to her ex-fiancé.

“Jenn should have stood up in the middle of her proposal and given everyone the peace sign. Walked out of that studio and never looked back,” former Bachelor Ben Higgins wrote on X. “Absolutely cruel and unnecessary to make her watch that again. I can’t believe it.”

“I disagree that ABC advertised the first Asian American bachelorette, saying she was making history and pushing boundaries, only to ultimately demean her in this way,” a fan with the username @realitytvyapper wrote on X.

The decision was especially disheartening because Tran is the first Asian American Bachelorette. The franchise has a complicated history with race, a history that has only begun to be addressed after its first handful of leads of color were included. Tran’s unfortunate ending adds to the franchise’s uncomfortable track record of failing to protect its non-white leads (see: the Matt James/Rachael Kirkconnell controversy from Rachel Lindsay’s season).

“Tonight is extra frustrating because the lead producers JUST did a major interview with the LA Times about how committed they are to protecting their leads of color and admitting past failures. They failed to protect Jenn tonight and during casting,” @bach_rants wrote on X.

Tran left the final with her head held as high as she could.

“I don’t regret asking that man to marry me,” she said, referring to video footage of Strader proposing. “That man doesn’t exist anymore, and the truth is I’m still the same woman I am.”

In any case, she will be busy with “Dancing With the Stars” for the time being.