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Warning: The Bachelorette Season 21 spoilers ahead: He’s the name on everyone’s lips but what really happened to Devin on The Bachelorette Season 21 to make the cast—and some viewers—to hate him so much?
Related: All The Bachelorette Season 21 spoilers, including Jenn’s inner
Devin Strader, a 28-year-old Freight Company Owner from Rosenberg, Texas, was one of 25 contestants on The Bachelorette Season 21 with Jenn Tran. Though he was a fan favorite to viewers, Devin seemed to be a villain to the other Bachelorette Season 21 cast members when he feuded with Aaron Erb, Thomas Nguyen, Sam McKinney, and other contestants throughout the first half of the season.
Related: The Bachelorette Season 21’s elimination order
Devin seemed to respond to the controversy in an Instagram post after Week 2 of The Bachelorette Season 21. “comin’ at me never works no matter who tries flip modes on you quick – got a few sides never moving just to get by the game turned me into this guy,” he captioned an Instagram carousel of him and Jenn. He also seemed to address the backlash from his cast mates in another Instagram caption in which he wrote, “a series of very fortunate events.” So what happened to Devin on The Bachelorette Season 21 to cause the whole Bachelor Mansion turn on him? Read on for the real story from Reality Steve.
SPOILER: What happned to Devin on The Bachelorette Season 21?
Devin was the winner of The Bachelorette Season 21 after Jenn gave him her final rose in the finale, which he accepted, according to Reality Steve. At the Final Rose Ceremony, Devin also proposed to Jenn, which she also accepted, and the two got engaged. Jenn and Devin are still together, at the time of writing, according to Reality Steve. (Jenn’s runner-up was Marcus Shoberg, a 31-year-old Army Ranger Veteran from Cloquet, Minnesota.)
Related: Meet The Bachelorette Season 21 cast
Devin had one one-on-one date with Jenn on The Bachelorette Season 21 in Week 4 in Auckland, New Zealand. Before The Bachelorette Season 21 finale, Devin was one of the villains of Jenn’s Bachelorette season after he feuded with contestants Aaron Erb and Thomas Nguyen in Week 2. The drama originated from Devin stealing Jenn away during a group date and interrupting Jenn’s one-on-one time with other contestants during the group date afterparty and the cocktail party before the third Rose Ceremony.
Related: Which Bachelorette couples are still together
Devin’s drama continued in Week 3 when he feuded with Sam McKinney, Jenn’s First Impression Rose recipient. (Sam was sent home in Week 5 before Hometown Dates, according to Reality Steve.) Because of his drama, Devin was a controversial winner to The Bachelorette Season 21 cast, who have accused the show of trying to protect Devin because he’s Jenn’s winner.
According to Reality Steve, Devin was involved in a controversial moment on night one of The Bachelorette Season 21 when the cast played a game of “Truth or Dare.” During the game, Devin was asked to name a conspiracy theory he believed in, to which he allegedly responded, “I believe 9/11 was an inside job,” according to Reality Steve.
Though the scene didn’t air as part of The Bachelorette Season 21 premiere, Reality Steve confirmed that Jenn and the rest of the cast was there during Devin’s comment and that moment played a part in Devin’s drama with the cast throughout the rest of Season 21 and was one of the main reasons that the other contestants didn’t get along with him.
Sam M. accused The Bachelorette of not accurately editing him in his feud with Devin in a since-deleted Instagram comment in July 2024. Most felt like that and rightfully so. I even felt like that. I was incredibly disheartening to be portrayed in that fashion. Hopefully at the tell all the truth will come out,” he wrote in a since-deleted comment in response to fans calling him a villain on The Bachelorette Season 21. He continued in another comment, “Oh and legally I’m not allowed to speak on it… and now I’m figuring out why.”
Many of Sam M.’s family members also hinted at unfair editing toward him and biased editing toward Devin, according to comments shared by TikTok account Zachary Reality. “I’m ready for @bacheloretteabc to show allllll the context they’ve left out,” Sam’s relative, Olivia McKinney, wrote in a comment.
“Crazy how they can cut out so much detail to make a person look shallow while making others look like a king,” aother relative, Seth McKinney, wroe in a comment.” He added in another comment, “crazy thing called producers and editing can make people see what they want not what actually happened.”
Hannah McKinney, another relative, also seemingly called on The Bachelorette to air the deleted footage of Devin. “Let’s see all the footage @bacheloretteabc…. I’m waiting,” she wrote.
Susan McKinney, another of Sam M.’s relatives, shared a Facebook post in which she accused The Bachelorette of trying to “destroy” Sam M.’s character to seemingly boost the profile of Devin in viewers’ eyes. “There is nothing real about ‘reality’ tv. To destroy someone’s character and manipulate the truth through editing is wrong on so many levels. Isn’t it interesting that the first night favorite is now being made into the villain?” she wrote. “There are several spoilers out there for who she chooses in the end that you can Google for yourself. Sam is a good guy regardless of how he is betrayed and I will no longer sit idly by and not speak up. Hey The Bachelorette it’s called free speech. At least mine is honest which is more than they can say.”
Sam M.’s father, Jeff McKinney, shared his own Facebook post where he also criticized The Bachelorette for editing Sam M. in a negative light. “I choose my words wisely. I have sat idly by this week watching my son a complete wreck on how he was portrayed,” he wrote. “Sam has (mostly) been the favorite with the first impression rose, etc. The spoiler was revealed and (in my opinion) the network had to paint Sam as this horrendous guy in order for Jenn not to look like a complete idiot.”
He continued, “Now I know why the network offers free counseling for 1 year after the show. I feel this episode was all fabricated with cut and paste sentences and scenes. Can’t change what he said and how he said it but they can change the scene, script and context and totally change the delivery. That’s the way I feel. Feel free to share this. #ISTANDWITHSAM.”
Who’s Devin from The Bachelorette Season 21?
Devin Strader, is a 28-year-old Freight Company Owner from Rosenberg, Texas, who now lives in Houston, Texas. His Instagram handle is @devin.strader. According to his Linkedin, Devin is the owner of F1 Freight Consultants, a “full-scale, dedicated Truckload, and LTL service provider,” that launched in March 2023.
“As a dedicated consultant firm, F1 strives to deliver both the most cost effective solutions, as well as tackling transportation & logistics challenges throughout North America. F1 Freight Consultants, LLC handles thousands of shipments monthly with streamline efficiency, and have proven to be a single source solution for all transportation needs,” Devin’s Linkedin reads.
Before F1 Freight Consultants, Devin worked as a Vice President in Acquisitions at the transportation company,t Shark Logistics, from 2020 to 2023. He graduated from Louisiana State University in 2019.
Read Devin’s official Bachelorette Season 21 biography and fun facts below:
“Devin is the full package and is so ready to meet his match. This business owner is 100% husband material and dreams of surprising his partner with romantic gestures throughout their relationship. Devin is extremely hardworking, passionate about his career, and proud of the business he’s built. When he’s not working, he loves running and spending time with his dog, Charlie — these two are a package deal. Devin is hoping his future wife is honest, kind, and embraces his big personality. He admits he’s a bit loud and loves to talk. Devin is truly here to find his person and hopefully return home with Jenn by his side.
Fun Facts:
● Devin ran a 200-mile relay race with his buddies.
● Devin loves eating shrimp tacos despite being allergic to shrimp.
● Devin’s mom is his hero.”
The Bachelorette airs on Mondays at 8 p.m. on ABC. Stream it on Hulu.
