Bachelorette finale spoilers have emerged revealing details on the ending of Katie Thurston's journey to find love -- including whether she picked and ended up with Justin Glaze or Blake Moynes as well as a new spoiler update on whether Katie is still dating or engaged to her winner.
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[The Bachelorette Spoilers Warning: This report features spoilers revealing how Katie Thurston's The Bachelorette season ends -- including who Katie picked as her winner and ended up with, and if she and her winner are still together now.]
Katie's The Bachelorette season is coming to a close, with a final two-hour episode airing Monday, August 9 at 8PM ET/PT, followed by a one-hour After the Final Rose special at 10PM ET/PT on ABC.
The Bachelorette: After the Final Rose special appears to have been pre-taped in July with Kaitlyn Bristowe and Tayshia Adams serving as co-hosts in front of a studio audience.
The finale will begin with Kaitlyn, Tayshia and fans watching the final moments of Katie's Bachelorette journey unravel together.
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Katie must decide whether she can move on from her breakup with Greg Grippo and give her heart away to either Blake, a 30-year-old wildlife manager from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, or Justin, a 26-year-old investment sales consultant from Baltimore, MD.
"Defeated and on the bathroom floor after a devastating breakup, can Katie pick herself back up and continue with the two remaining men she is also falling in love with?" ABC teased in a press release for the finale.
A preview that aired at the end of The Bachelorette's August 2 penultimate episode showed Blake lamenting to the cameras, "If Katie is still hung up on Greg, then there's no point to this."
If Katie chooses to continue dating her Final 2 bachelors, will they even be onboard?
And then on After the Final Rose, Kaitlyn and Tayshia will sit down and have a conversation with Katie as well as her Final 3 bachelors -- including Greg -- in attempt to "make sense of what happened in New Mexico."
Katie's time on the show has already been "a wild ride," and she has teased on multiple occasions how her ending is untraditional and unconventional.
When the last episode ended in a cliffhanger, Katie appeared broken and said she felt "destroyed" after Greg chose to quit the competition after hometown dates because Katie had failed to give him the reassurance and validation he needed that their relationship was "real."
Greg accused Katie of being too focused on her Bachelorette role and giving out roses, and he said he hated feeling like just "a number" to her, even if she believed he was her "No. 1."
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"So what do you want to happen?" Kaitlyn asked Katie, trying to console her in the bathroom following Greg's departure.
"I want someone to book my flight home," Katie responded.
So what happened next on Katie's season? Did Katie dump Justin, Blake or both men -- and did she leave the show engaged to her true love?
Katie previously said on The Bachelorette: The Men Tell All, "My ending is ultimately how everything was supposed to happen. I'm a big believer in everything happens for a reason, and that's something I still believe in to this day... I'm happy."
Keep reading for spoilers about The Bachelorette's upcoming finale event!
The Bachelorette season wraps up where it started
Like last year's The Bachelorette season and this year's The Bachelor season, Katie's entire The Bachelorette season was filmed at a single location. In this case, it taped at the Hyatt Regency Tamaya in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico.During filming, cast and crew were required to quarantine before filming began and then follow coronavirus safety measures throughout their time at the resort, according to Reality Steve spoiler blogger Steve Carbone.
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"I think that people are looking for change in the franchise," Tayshia said.
"And I really think that this is something that they're going to be really excited about."
Katie's The Bachelorette season wrapped up sooner than planned
The Bachelorette season reportedly wrapped production sooner than producers anticipated because Katie's journey to find love ended unexpectedly early.According to a source, The Bachelorette "went great and it wrapped a week ahead of schedule," Us Weekly reported.
Production reportedly ended on April 24, which was definitely earlier than producers had planned.
"Katie was in control and made sure the men she wanted were there and the men she wasn't interested in, she sent packing," the source told the magazine.
After taping The Bachelorette, Katie returned to Instagram on April 28 and hinted at how she had started "a healthy relationship."
"Can't start a healthy relationship without being healthy," Katie captioned a video of herself getting the coronavirus vaccine, hinting that she may have found her true love on The Bachelorette after all.
Greg's exit shattered Katie's heart into pieces
During a June 30 appearance on Nick Viall's "The Viall Files" podcast, Katie confessed that she totally and completely got crushed while filming the show."Have you ever had your heart broken?" asked Nick, who hosted a group date earlier in the season.
"Oh, a thousand times. Okay, that's a little dramatic, but yeah, of course I've had my heart broken," Katie admitted. "On the season I had my heart broken!"
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"You woke up the next day... and for a half a second you feel okay," Nick explained, "until you realize how f-cking sh-tty your existence is and your body swells up with anxiety... and you're just like, 'F-ck, my heart is broken!'"
"Oh my God!" Katie replied.
"Am I wrong? If you've had your heart broken, you know exactly what I mean," Nick said.
"I get it, that's very intense and accurate -- but yes," Katie confirmed.
"That happened?" Nick asked.
"Yes," Katie repeated. "It's tough being the lead. People don't realize that. People are like, 'Did you have fun?' And I'm like, 'F-ck no, I didn't have fun!'"
Katie seems to believe Greg gaslighted her on The Bachelorette
When The Bachelorette's penultimate episode aired on August 2 and featured Katie and Greg's final fight and their breakup, Katie took to her Instagram Stories that night and posted an image that read, "So you want to talk about gaslighting."Katie's Instagram Stories post linked to a "Gaslighting" slideshow post on another Instagram account that includes a definition for gaslighting.
The Instagram slideshow defines "gaslighting" as "a form of emotional abuse or psychological manipulation involving distorting the truth in order to confuse or instill doubt in another person to the point they question their own sanity or reality."
It also lists the following as signs of gaslighting: "lying, discrediting, deflecting blame, minimizing, shifting blame and denying wrongdoing."
While Katie didn't name Greg directly or even mention her The Bachelorette breakup, fans were led to assume she was referring to Greg as the gaslighter since social media was buzzing about their brutal breakup at the time and many Twitter users had even called Greg out for emotionally manipulating Katie.
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Bachelor Nation has been conflicted over whether Greg was truly gaslighting or whether he had every right to react and act the way he did.
The Bachelorette bachelor Connor Brennan, for example, wrote in a since-deleted tweet that there was "no gaslighting" in Greg's last conversation with Katie, but Week 2 eliminee John Hersey said anyone defending the way Greg had behaved is "extremely unhealthy."
Katie opted to continue with The Bachelorette process after Greg quit
While Katie decided not to let Greg's departure ruin her whole Bachelorette journey, it's unclear how Katie proceeded with Justin and Blake.A Bachelorette usually has three men remaining during her round of overnight Fantasy Suite dates, but Katie only had to.
Carbone never reported whether both Justin and/or Blake received a Fantasy Suite date -- or if Katie even had Fantasy Suite dates at all.
Given there is only one episode left and it will presumably include the Final Rose Ceremony, the series of events leading up to Katie's final decision are unclear.
"It's definitely not a traditional ending as Katie says, and once Greg leaves after this blowup, I'm sure there's some weirdness on how Katie continues on because clearly she was into him and I'm sure she wasn't expecting this blowout to happen," Carbone wrote in his blog.
So did Katie choose a winner or dump both Blake and Justin?
According to Carbone, Katie pressed on and left the show happy and in a relationship.And not only did Katie enter a relationship, but she reportedly got engaged!
"I guess the biggest 'spoiler' I have for you is this: Katie is engaged. However, I don't know to who," Carbone wrote on May 13.
Carbone had yet to learn the identity of Katie's The Bachelorette winner at the time.
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But the spoiler blogger had no doubts that Katie accepted a marriage proposal at the end of The Bachelorette's seventeenth season.
"Katie definitely got engaged at the end of this," Carbone insisted in his blog.
"And unless she breaks up before the finale, which I guess anything can happen, but she's happy and engaged as we speak, so I'd expect that to last."
Carbone wrote in a June 22 blog posting that he felt "very close" to knowing Katie's fiance.
"I just need certain confirmations before running with the winner this season," he explained. "While I've been able to correct wrong reveals in the past, it's not fun having to do that."
Carbone continued, "So I'd rather have it right from the get go rather than reveal something I'm not totally 100 percent on and have to go back and correct."
Katie picked Blake Moynes over Justin Glaze reportedly
Katie selected Blake in the end, Carbone reported, and Katie accepted Blake's marriage proposal.Carbone revealed the alleged winner of Katie's season and whom she got engaged to on June 23.
Carbone wrote in his blog, "I don't know how the Final 4 shakes out just yet in terms of who goes home when... [but] Katie is engaged to Blake Moynes."
"Maybe some people will be surprised by this, and maybe some won't," the spoiler blogger added, "but I was able to get it confirmed."
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"That never does me any good," Carbone explained. "Sure, I expect there to be doubt like every season. All I can say is it's been about a 7 week process since filming ended to get this info, and I'm very confident in what I've been told."
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Carbone insisted he has received "actual proof" that Katie did not get engaged to Justin or Greg.
"All signs pointed to Blake due to process of elimination, but I still didn't feel comfortable reporting Blake because nobody had actually told me 'Katie is engaged to Blake.' I also hadn't been told that she DIDN'T pick him either," Carbone shared.
"Just hadn't heard anything regarding Blake until this past weekend I got my first 'She's with Blake' info, then yesterday, got the confirmation I needed."
Carbone therefore confirmed Katie is with Blake and they're engaged.
Justin and Katie's ending is unclear
Other than Katie accepting a marriage proposal from Blake, Carbone is unsure about the timing of the engagement and what transpired in the days or moments beforehand.Justin's placement in Katie's finishing order is therefore the missing piece of Reality Steve's puzzle.
Justin could have quit or been eliminated by Katie right after Greg left.
It's also possible Justin made it to Katie's Final 2 bachelors and was dumped at the Final Rose Ceremony when Katie and Blake reportedly got engaged.
So are Blake and Katie still together now?
Considering it's not rare or abnormal for a Bachelor or Bachelorette couple to break up shortly after filming the finale -- like in Arie Luyendyk Jr. or Hannah Brown's case with their winners -- fans are probably wondering if Katie is currently happy single or in a relationship.ADVERTISEMENT
"I just know that Katie got engaged to Blake at the end of filming and they're still together," Carbone wrote June 23 on Instagram.
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However, Katie revealed in late July that she planned to move from Washington to San Diego, CA, according to Life & Style, which could indicate there's trouble in paradise considering Blake lives in Ontario, Canada.
Blake also gave the impression during The Bachelorette hometowns that he'd like Katie to move to Canada if they ended up together.
But fans are putting a lot of stock in the fact Katie has said numerous times she is "happy."
At this point, most The Bachelorette viewers are therefore hoping Katie got her happy ending and that she and Blake will appear still engaged and together on After the Final Rose.
And Carbone recently reiterated that will be the case.
"Katie and Blake are engaged and are happy," he wrote in an August 4 blog post. "Nothing has changed... They're engaged."
But viewers can also expect major tension on After the Final Rose
According to ABC, Katie and Greg will have "a tense confrontation" when they reunite on The Bachelorette: After the Final Rose to discuss his sudden departure after hometown dates.Katie seemingly confirmed on Twitter that After the Final Rose taped in late July AND that she lashed out at Greg during the taping.
The Bachelor Season 24 bachelorette Madison Prewett tweeted on July 26, "Never trust your tongue when your heart is wounded. Hush until you heal."
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Katie is therefore allowing fans to believe she had given Greg a piece of her mind and their dynamic wasn't a pretty or amicable one.
Blake felt he and Katie could end up engaged from Day 1
When Blake asked to join Katie's The Bachelorette season, he made it very clear that he was ready to get engaged if his relationship with Katie lasted all the way to the end of the show.And even his The Bachelorette ex, Tayshia, believed his intentions were good and pure.
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"He really felt passionately you guys would be an amazing match," Tayshia told Katie during The Bachelorette's June 29 episode, before Katie met Blake face to face for the first time.
"I think he's an amazing guy and I truly feel like he is someone that has good intentions... I know you're not here for somebody that's not going to get down on a knee at the end of this, and I really feel like he can be that person for you."
Tayshia insisted Blake was genuine and would accept Katie for who she is.
When Katie and Blake met, Blake apologized for throwing "a wrench" into her plans but said he was "intrigued" by her openness, boldness, confidence and playfulness on Matt James' season of The Bachelor.
Katie -- who revealed Blake had sent her a DM on Instagram prior to filming The Bachelorette -- called Blake "very handsome" and seemed giddy, but she worried about being his third Bachelorette after both Tayshia and Clare Crawley.
Blake said he completely understood that and wished he could have met Katie under different circumstances.
"This is the last place I want to do this," Blake insisted.
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Blake added, "It just comes down to the fact that I would 'what if?' and regret forever if I didn't do this."
Katie admitted there could "maybe" be something between them but she feared letting down her original bachelors.
"I promise you that if it came down to the end and we connected in a way that I think that we might, we would be engaged at the end of this," Blake assured Katie. "I didn't come here to disappoint, and I wouldn't do that to you. That's just not me."
Katie smiled big and called Blake "a troublemaker," but he said that could be a good thing.
After careful consideration, Katie allowed Blake to join her cast of men, and clearly the wildlife activist lived up to his word!
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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski