Maria Georgas was one of The Bachelor season 28's final women, but Joey Graziadei gave his final rose to Kelsey Anderson instead. Joey, a 28-year-old tennis professional, kicked off the first night by meeting 32 women, including 29-year-old Maria. Joey was the runner-up from The Bachelorette season 20. Though he didn't win Charity Lawson's heart, he was given a second chance at finding true love on national television.
The cast of The Bachelor season 28 is historic in that it features 32 single women, the most women who ever participated in the previous seasons of the long-running series. Among the hopeful women vying for Joey's heart was Maria, a quirky executive assistant from Kleinburg, Ontario, Canada. Though she was one of the front-runners and a fan favorite throughout the season, she was eliminated after her hometown date. Though Maria went home in tears, she has since bounced back and is showing off her revenge body on social media.
Maria In A Sheer Body-Con Dress
Eat Your Heart Out, Joey
The Bachelor season 28 cast featured the usual bevy of beautiful, accomplished women for Joey to choose from. However, the quirky and eccentric Maria managed to stand out from the crowd and capture his attention early in the season, and she was really into him as well. On night one, she insisted that she wouldn't kiss Joey, but when he leaned in for the kiss, she went for it. The two had great chemistry, so fans were shocked when Maria went home before the overnight dates.
In May, Maria posted Instagram photos of herself wearing a sheer black fitted body-conscious dress. The dress was striped in sheer fabric, leaving little to the imagination. She wore black pointy slingback heels and a black and white leather shoulder bag to finish the look. The post has over 150K likes.
Maria Rocks A Drop Dead Gorgeous Two-Piece Set
Inspired By Cher
One of the main storylines of The Bachelor season 28 was the bizarre conflict between Maria and Sydney Gordon. When Sydney was eliminated during a two-on-one with Joey and Maria, Lea Cayanan began feuding with Maria. This led to speculation that the other women were jealous of Maria's connection with Joey.
In April, Maria posted a photo of herself wearing a bespoke gray two-piece skirt set that really shows off her flat stomach and curves. The post has 209.6k likes, and the caption reads, "Cher inspired this look & @yung.reaper brought it to life for me." Fans took to the post's comment section to register their approval of Maria's smoking hot look. One fan referenced Maria's conflict with the other women from The Bachelor season 28, writing, "Jeeez n this is why there was so much drama surrounding you princess."
Maria In A White Mini Dress
It's Giving Bridal
In May, Maria posted several photos of herself in Miami to Instagram. In the photos, Maria is posing in a gorgeous white floral mini dress. She looks like a bride at her bachelorette party in Miami. Maria's caption reads, "Thank you @emasavahl," a shout-out to the designer who likely gave Maria the dress in exchange for her advertising it on Instagram. Seeing how fabulous Maria looks in the dress, it's easy to see why the designer would think she'd be a great model.
The post has 209.6K likes.
Maria Kissed A Snake
"Snakes In The City"
In June, Maria posted a clip of herself on Instagram kissing a snake. In the photo, a large bearded man holds a giant hissing snake for Maria and an unnamed woman to kiss. Maria's caption reads, "Snakes in the city," and the post's location is New York City. The post has 181K likes.
Things went downhill for Maria after Joey chose her for a group date instead of a coveted one-on-one date, as did all the other women on the group date. Knowing there would be a group date rose, Maria took Joey aside and told him she was seriously thinking about leaving. Since falling for someone who didn't reciprocate his feelings was Joey's biggest fear, he shut down and declined to hand out the group date rose.
Despite all that, Joey gave Maria one of his final four roses. He visited her hometown in Canada, where Joey met Nick Georgas, Maria's father. Though the date seemed to go well, Maria felt insecure about it, so she interrupted the rose ceremony to pull Joey aside and tell him how she felt. Either Maria sensed Joey was leaning towards eliminating her and freaked out, or her freak-out convinced him to eliminate her. Either way, Maria did not receive one of Joey's final three roses.
Why Maria Turned Down The Bachelorette
She Addressed The Matter Publicly
In May, after weeks of speculation, Maria confirmed the rumor she was offered the role of The Bachelorette but turned it down. Maria sat down with Alex Cooper of the Call Her Daddy podcast. She opened up about her journey, love life, and experience on The Bachelor. "I was offered the role. It was mine until I said it wasn’t," Maria said, adding, "It became very overwhelming to the point where I had to decline. I just was not ready."
Maria went on to explain that though she was initially excited about the prospect of being The Bachelorette, she realized it wasn't making her happy. She admitted her mental health wasn't where it needed to be. "Jenn, though, was the perfect pick," Maria told the podcast audience, referring to Jenn Tran. "She is the most perfect Bachelorette in my eyes. I couldn’t think of anyone better to do this," Maria added. Addressing her future with the franchise, Maria was firm that though she was single, she didn't plan to appear on Bachelor In Paradise season 10.
