August 01, 2023
Ricky Middlesworth/ABC
During the latest episode of 'The Bachelorette,' local contestant Joey Graziadei welcomed lead Charity Lawson to Collegeville, Montgomery County for a hometown date.
This week on "The Bachelorette," lead Charity Lawson visited the hometowns of her remaining four suitors. Her cross-country trip included a stop in the Philadelphia suburbs.
Contestant Joey Graziadei invited Lawson to Collegeville, Montgomery County to meet his family and play some tennis in an episode that aired Monday, July 31.
MORE: Meet Joey Graziadei, 'The Bachelorette' contestant from Montgomery County
Graziadei, 28, grew up in Royersford and attended Spring-Ford Area High School. He then played tennis at West Chester University, where he majored in communication and media studies and graduated in 2017. He has since relocated to Hawaii, where he teaches tennis.
Despite his new home, Graziadei still roots for some Philly teams, as he posted an Instagram photo in May wearing Phillies gear.
Throughout the season so far, Graziadei has become a fan-favorite contestant and has built a strong relationship with Lawson. He confessed that he was falling in love with her during last week's episode.
On Monday, Graziadei had the opportunity to continue strengthening his relationship with Lawson by introducing her to his family, which he has previously stressed the importance of in his life.
"Family does mean the world to me," Graziadei said earlier this season. "When I was in kindergarten, my dad came out as gay. It's made me more loving and accepting. I thought by this age I'd be with someone, and I do want a family. This could be the one." Spoilers ahead for season 20, episode six of "The Bachelorette"
Although Graziadei and Lawson have been smooth sailing so far in their relationship, their hometown date in Pennsylvania seemed to cast some doubt on their love story.
Things started out lighthearted enough, as Graziadei took Lawson to an indoor tennis court for a lesson. Graziadei's Uncle Joe unexpectedly crashed the date with some apprehension about the chemistry between the pair.
“I like Charity,” Uncle Joe told the cameras. “She seems fantastic, but something didn’t feel 100 percent with Joey.”
After the lesson, the pair meets up with Graziadei's mom, sister, dad and other family members. While Graziadei's family expresses a desire to protect him from heartbreak, they all seem to hit it off with Lawson. But Uncle Joe continues to assert his doubts.
“Are you portraying yourself, or are you portraying somebody that she wants?” Uncle Joe asked Graziadei.
“(Joey) oftentimes is trying to be somebody I want him to be,” Uncle Joe told Lawson privately.
Earlier in the episode, Lawson told cameras she planned to tell Graziadei she's falling in love with him. Instead, she leaves Pennsylvania in tears, unsure whether she is getting the genuine version of Graziadei.
As members of Bachelor Nation often do, fans took to social media during the episode to offer their thoughts. Reactions ranged from expressing chagrin at Uncle Joe's behavior to speculating whether Graziadei could be the next star of "The Bachelor" if he does not receive Lawson's final rose.
If Joey's not Charity's husband then he's the next Bachelor #TheBachelorette #bachelorette pic.twitter.com/2Y09AMmgR8
— storms & tv takes (@StormsandSativa) July 25, 2023
Joey to his uncle when he finds out he’s the reason for charity acting weird #TheBachelorette #bachelorette pic.twitter.com/aZTymiuyCf
— maddi (@maddikarpiej) August 1, 2023
I feel like Joey’s family is giving off the vibe that we are missing something big about Joey. #TheBachelorette pic.twitter.com/h98ZONbA89
— Maggie L (@maggiebachstuff) August 1, 2023
I’ll never forgive Uncle Joe if he ruins this for Charity and Joey #TheBachelorette pic.twitter.com/54nvZtGHYR
— AP (@APsomaras) August 1, 2023
Joeys uncle is one of those weird invasive family members. Like why is he putting doubt in Charity’s mind about Joey? He needs to keep his weirdo skepticism to himself #thebachelorette
— AClear1202Violation (@Bravo35321874) August 1, 2023
Can we just skip to the part where Charity obviously picks Dotun and we make Joey the next bachelor? #TheBachelorette #bachelorette pic.twitter.com/sm4MLYj9P6
— emily 🌹 (@emilyblivetweet) August 1, 2023
Despite the bumps in the road during his hometown date, Graziadei received one of Lawson's final three roses. Along with contestants Xavier Bonner and Dotun Olubeko, Graziadei will jet-set off to Fiji in an attempt to earn Lawson's heart and the opportunity to propose.
"The Bachelorette" airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on ABC, and can be streamed the next day on Hulu.
Fans can view a trailer for next week's episode below:
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