Here's Why People Want Hannah B. For 'Bachelorette'

The Bachelor's "Women Tell All" special usually drops some pretty big hints about who the next Bachelorette will be, based on who gets called up to the couch and the tenor of her conversation with Chris Harrison. One contestant who had a pretty tough season seemed to come alive in her post-show interview, prompting fans to wonder if Hannah B. will be the next Bachelorette. I mean, she already has a fiercely hashtaggable nickname in Hannah Beast.

After watching an emotional video tracking the progress and eventual demise of their relationship, Hannah told Chris that she felt proud of how much she had grown on the show. Clad in a simple black dress and sparkly statement earrings, she was able to joke about her struggles with opening up early on in the process — who could forget that cringeworthy toast? — and explained how pageant culture had shaped her mindset. "For me, I have a pressure to be perfect," she said, "and for me, it wasn't always the best. I would put on whatever I thought people wanted to see in me."

But with the benefit of so many women to date, Colton didn't have any expectations of her. Hannah needed to set herself apart on that first one-on-one date by being herself, which it sounds like she's never had permission to do before — at least, not on a date.

Hannah explained that she thought she was going to follow the path that had been charted out for her growing up in Alabama: marry her childhood sweetheart right out of college and "start spitting out babies." (This earned an audience chuckle, so I would also place bets on "Let's start spitting out babies!" becoming her Bachelorette catchphrase.)

"Ultimately, I thought that was going to be okay for me," she continued. "But that is not okay for me. I want so much more, and I deserve so much more, and I don't know why I ever settled for that, because that's what everybody else did."

A woman who's just ditched her limited, smalltown fairytale of what love can be to step into the real world with real humans and real feelings? Sounds like somebody in Bachelorette mindset to me.

Chris Harrison remarked that it sounded like the experience had profoundly changed Hannah, which she enthusiastically agreed with. "This experience and the relationship that I have with Colton allowed me to see myself in a different way," she said, "and be vulnerable with who I am and who I want to be and what type of love I want to have and receive."

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight at the "Women Tell All" taping, Hannah refused to confirm that she was "in talks" to be the next Bachelorette. But she did say that she was eager for the opportunity to continue "shedding that layer" in front of Bachelor Nation — which both gives her a good redemption arc and addresses any lingering concerns that she might not be bold enough on camera. There's no official word yet on who the Bachelorette will be, but needless to say, Hannah's a major frontrunner.