'Mormon Bachelor' begins new season

When people tell the story of Cinderella, they usually tell it from her point of view. This time, it’s the prince who’s telling this story, and it involves hundreds of young ladies clamoring to be his one true love. Wouldn’t it be nice if the prince had help to sift through all those potential princesses? Well, now he does. 

The next season of the Mormon Bachelor will air on themormonbachelorette.com this July, and this year’s prince charming is ready to find his Cinderella. Kent Tuttle is a BYU grad currently at dental school in Arizona. Measuring at 6’6”, he’s an avid volleyball and basketball player, and despite his difficult relationship history, he knows he’s in the right place at the right time to fall in love.

“I fasted and prayed about it, and [the Mormon Bachelor] seemed like something I just needed to do,” said Tuttle. “I think that when you get your heart broken, the best thing to do is just put it right back out there—as hard as that may be.”

His heart may be prepared, but Tuttle wasn’t quite ready for the overwhelming response from LDS women all over the country. 

“I had never really followed ‘The Bachelor,’ so I don’t think I knew the full scope of what I was getting myself into,” said Tuttle. Over 400 girls applied to go out with him, and only 13 will be chosen to go on a first date with Tuttle. With so many girls hoping to have a chance to even try on the glass slipper, hopefully at least one will be a perfect fit. But lucky for Tuttle, the girls will be chosen by his best friend, Chris Barbour, and the show’s executive producer, creator and matchmaker extraordinaire, Erin Elton. 

“We want a diverse group of girls. . . . We’re trying not to pigeonhole ourselves too much into what Kent wanted,” said Elton. Although many of the girls who applied said they are very athletic, like Tuttle, Elton’s intuition tells her that it takes more than common interests to create the right match. Personality and testimony are what count in this dating game.

“The girls have to be active in the Church,” said Elton. “Just someone who is really bubbly and outgoing and just fun. Because Kent is so much fun.”

And there’s no way this fun-loving prince will be duped by any pretending stepsisters, because he knows exactly the sort of woman his princess will be.

“I need someone who is lighthearted, who loves to have fun,” said Tuttle. “I want someone who is my best friend . . . someone who is working on being 100% loyal, 100% honest, 100% virtuous.”

When Elton created the Mormon Bachelorette (and ensuing Mormon Bachelor) a few years ago, there were a few skeptics, and she worried that it would reflect badly on the Church. But since the debut, the show has maintained the highest standards of the Church in both behavior and dress. And this year, the response has been not only positive but also nationally syndicated. Good Morning America and E! News have both highlighted the Mormon Bachelor and Kent Tuttle’s search for eternal love. 

Elton knew that Tuttle was the right candidate not only because he puts his faith in the gospel, but also because he trusts that the show can truly help him find the right eternal companion.

“Kent was the one of all of them that stuck out because he really wants to get married and have this work,” said Elton. “I hope that Kent gets married—for sure. That’s why we do it.”

In the previous seasons of the Mormon Bachelor, there have been all sorts of endings—happy, sad and unlucky ones. This year, keep your fingers crossed, and maybe there will be one more happily ever after added to the list. 

“I think it could work because whatever you put in, you get out,” Tuttle said. “It’s like that with everything in life. I figure, if I put my whole heart into the show, it’s destined to work.”

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