Hannah Ann Sluss was spotted in Palm Springs, making fans wonder if somehow she is the new Bachelorette.
This has been a wild, unprecedented season so far ... but insiders promise that there's a reasonable explanation for why Hannah Ann was there.
Clare Crawley is no stranger to the franchise.
The 39-year-old was selected to be this year's Bachelorette, in part because of her maturity.
Hopes for a calmer, more "adult" season were dashed when Clare reportedly quit filming 12 days into the season because she was in love.
It's not that anyone blames her for wanting to waste no more time before faceplanting into Dale Moss' chest, but what was production to do?
Reports quickly claimed that producers had opted to replace Clare with Tayshia Adams, who had been a runner-up for this year's leading lady.
While they were questions about how they were so quickly able to swap in someone else to their quarantined season, fans were excited.
But then, on Tuesday, August 4, the incomparably beautiful Hannah Ann Sluss was spotted in Palm Springs, at the resort where the season is filming.
Hannah Ann only turned 24 a few months ago, but has already won over a huge part of the Bachelor Nation.
Could she be the new Bachelorette? That would be a surprise, but then, this is a season full of surprises.
She is arguably Clare's total opposite in terms of the age spectrum. Would Clare's leftovers even make sense for her?
And then there is the bigger question: what about all of these reports about Tayshia taking the reins?
We love Hannah Ann, but Tayshia makes a lot more sense to step in for Clare -- even though she also deserves her own, full season and handpicked suitors.
E! News spoke to an inside source to get to the bottom of Hannah Ann's eye-catching presence.
"Becca Kufrin and Hannah Ann Sluss are there as friends," an insider dishes.
That is interesting for a lot of reasons -- but the source had more to say.
"It's now transitioning into a regular Bachelorette season," the source explains.
"And," the insider continues, "they are there to lend support."
Just as we have seen other Ghosts of Seasons Past appear early on for advice and moral support, Hannah Ann and Becca are there for Tayshia.
"The producers have told her that the season will still lead with Clare and her short-lived journey," the source confirms.
"And," the insider continues, the season "will show Clare falling in love with one of her suitors."
The source then details: "Clare will then conclude her journey and announce that Tayshia is the lead."
Tayshia's exes Colton Underwood and John Paul Jones have both given her a shout-out, further confirming her new role.
Speaking of which, though Colton and JPJ are different people, we think that we have identified her type.
If there are any himbos -- men who are both deeply hot and adorably stupid -- on her season, they're likely to be frontrunners. Just saying.
It's interesting to hear that Becca is also there for moral support, as she has been trying to figure out whether to break up with bigoted fiance Garrett Yrigoyen for months.
Perhaps spending time around even more people who aren't terrible will help to put her awful fiance into perspective.
But really, it's Tayshia's season and it's all about her. Becca and Hannah Ann are expected to only appear in one episode and then step out of the spotlight.
