You don't have to dig too deep through Twitter to find praise for The Bachelorette's Mike Johnson, a smiling contestant who listens attentively to Hannah Brown and calls out misbehaving men on their problematic acts. Season 15 of The Bachelorette has just barely reached its halfway point, but fans are already campaigning for Mike as Bachelor. It's about time for an African-American Bachelor, but before viewers think ahead to a entirely new Bachelor cycle, who is Mike on The Bachelorette?
The 31-year-old portfolio manager won over fans immediately with his intro in the Season 15 premiere. After comparing his love life to the titular message of Home Alone, Mike took cameras to visit his great-grandmother, the first woman he fell in love with. His grandma advised him to listen to Hannah, and Mike quipped, "OK, I've got big ears for a reason."
The easy joke foreshadowed how smoothly Mike slid into viewers' hearts throughout the rest of the premiere. He focused his one-on-one time on how Hannah was feeling, which is essentially how Mike has acted as the season continues. In addition to calling attention to concerning behavior from contestants Cam and Luke P., the Texas native has kept Hannah's well-being in mind.
It's still too early to predict whether Mike will walk away from The Bachelorette with a polished Bachelor edit, but until then, here's what you should know about him.
Mike's ABC bio mentions his past service, and as a likely result of his time in the Air Force, he's also been to 30 countries. It turns out that Mike's great-grandma is no stranger to TV cameras. Back in 2017, Mike shared an old news clip on Instagram documenting his surprise return from the Air Force during the holidays. The segment followed him to his grandma's house and captured their happy reunion. If you thought Grandma's love advice was great, it's impossible not to smile when she and Mike go through family pictures and laugh over an inside joke.
Bachelorette contestants have always been vocal about struggling to maintain workout routines in the mansion without exercise equipment. Mike hasn't opened up about his Bachelorette exercise yet, but given his martial arts background, maybe it was easier for him to keep in shape through some of these moves. Does Hannah have a Krav Maga challenge in store for the men this season?
Mike told Hannah in a recent episode that the women in his family were his queens, and if his time with his grandma leaves you wanting, check out this YouTube video Mike uploaded in 2012. Its description reads, "This is the video that was shot when I came home from London to see my mom, it had been a little over a year."
As the footage shows, Mike's plan to surprise his mother at work came to halt when he realized she left early. For Plan B, friends visited his mom's house under the guise of filming a video to send to Mike. Mike then knocked at the door, stepping inside with that megawatt grin Bachelor Nation has become so familiar with. Mission accomplished!
If you follow Mike on Instagram, you've probably noticed his frequent Stories sharing Bachelorette-related posts that others tag him in. In between appreciating fans, he often posts videos of himself reminding followers to keep things bright and talking about the importance of mentorship and giving back to your community. He's even discussed his past volunteer work with Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, which sounds like the makings of a future one-on-one Bachelor date — just saying.
Pilot Peter is also a fan favorite pick for the next Bachelor, but at the moment, it would take a lot for people to jump off the Mike train. A fan-made Bachelor poster featuring Mike has made the rounds on Twitter, and a search for Mike is packed with Bachelor pleas. Just as Rachel Lindsay's Bachelorette season marked the first black lead and a notable increase in contestants of color, Mike as Bachelor would also make history and hopefully lead to even more diverse women and men in the franchise. But for now, I'll root for Mike on The Bachelorette and be open to his potential stint on Bachelor in Paradise. Fingers crossed for his Bachelor billing!
Season 15 of The Bachelorette continues at 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday, June 11, on ABC.
