October 11, 2023
Bachelor Nation/Youtube
Tyler Norris, of South Jersey, will return to the beaches of "Bachelor in Paradise" to look for love this Thursday on ABC.
Tyler Norris, a South Jersey native who appeared on "The Bachelorette" and "Bachelor in Paradise" last year, is once again swapping the Jersey Shore for the beaches of Mexico on his journey for love.
A trailer for Thursday's episode of "Bachelor in Paradise" — a spinoff that brings castoffs from ABC's "The Bachelor" and "The Bachelorette" to a tropical location to mingle — shows Norris making a delayed entrance for a third chance at forming a relationship in front of cameras.
"Paradise! I'm back, baby," Norris exclaims upon his return. While several women remark on Norris' good looks, he zones in on his ex, Rachel Recchia, whom he dated during Season 19 of "The Bachelorette."
"Rachel, are you free?" Norris asks, armed with a date card that allows him to take any woman on the beach out for a rendezvous.
Tyler 2.0 has entered the #BachelorInParadise chat. 💬 pic.twitter.com/OV3cHoxfT4
— Bachelor in Paradise (@BachParadise) October 9, 2023
Norris, 27, is the owner of the Spirit Ball shop on the Wildwood boardwalk and a graduate of both Wildwood Catholic and Cabrini University in Radnor Township. He is from Rio Grande, Cape May County, but has relocated to San Diego since entering the "Bachelor" franchise. He makes trips to the Jersey Shore to spend time with family, according to his Instagram.
He previously starred in Season 8 of "Bachelor in Paradise," which aired last fall, where he formed a relationship with fellow contestant Brittany Galvin. They left the beach together as a couple at the end of the season, but things took a turn after the cameras stopped rolling. Galvin bought a ticket to Europe instead of California, where she was supposed to visit Norris, and broke up with him via FaceTime. Their goals didn't line up, she said.
Before that, on Recchia's season of "The Bachelorette" — a unique dual season she shared with Gabby Windey — Norris was a fan-favorite and made it to the final four. He took Recchia on a hometown date to the chilly Wildwood boardwalk, though she was less than impressed. Instead of meeting his family, as is customary during hometown dates, Recchia broke up with Norris on the spot.
"I'm okay with it not being me with Rachel, and there's going to be somebody for me," Norris told Extra TV following his breakup with Recchia. "I'm over it. I've moved on. My heart is going to be for somebody else someday."
Maybe not.
At the end of her season, Recchia chose Tino Franco, and things fell apart in dramatic fashion after she found out he cheated. Now, she's on the beach in "Paradise" to find love again.
Each season, "Bachelor in Paradise" starts with a group of men and women who form relationships and swap roses to solidify their connections. Once things begin to settle, producers call on more eligible bachelors and bachelorettes to enter the show, and they often wreak havoc on newly formed couples.
Recchia, a 27-year-old flight instructor from Florida, has been coupled with contestant Sean McLaughlin during the first two episodes of "Bachelor in Paradise" Season 9. With several love triangles forming and relationships already dissolving, Norris' arrival could definitely shake things up.
This year has brought no shortage of local contestants onto the "Bachelor" franchise. Joey Graziadei, of Collegeville, finished as runner-up on Season 20 of "The Bachelorette" and has been tapped as the next lead for "The Bachelor." On ABC's newest dating show spinoff, "The Golden Bachelor," contestant Susan Noles has impressed 72-year-old Gerry Turner so far with her Delco charm.
"Bachelor in Paradise" airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. on ABC.
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