Golden Bachelorette Joan Vassos’ DMs Were ‘Inundated’ with ‘D— Pics’

Ever since she made her Bachelor Nation debut, Joan Vassos has been turning heads — and her DMs have been getting rowdy.

The Golden Bachelorette star, 61, got candid about the attention she’s received since starring on the inaugural season of The Golden Bachelor. She told Entertainment Weekly that she’s been “inundated” with message requests from men on social media.

“I had a hard time navigating that process. On a dating app, they’re kind of vetted and you can see a profile. [With DMs], they’re just total strangers messaging you,” she said of the men who would reach out to her. “I didn’t really respond to those much. Or I would have little conversations and say, ‘Thank you, you’re so flattering,’ or whatever.”

Vassos went on to reveal that none of those connections “seemed to be anything that would really work out” and “some of the DMs were weird.”

“I got d— pics,” she explained. “And I got people with foot fetishes. They wanted me to send them pictures of my feet and would pay me for it. One person offered to buy all the shoes that I wore on Golden Bachelor. It was scary. My kids were like, ‘Give me your phone, mom. We’re blocking all this.'”

Vassos made her Bachelor franchise debut as a contestant on The Golden Bachelor, the first-ever season of the senior dating show that starred Gerry Turner. Despite being a frontrunner, Vassos chose to leave the show to help her daughter who was suffering from postpartum depression following the birth of her baby. 

In May, ABC announced that Vassos would be named The Golden Bachelorette. When asked about the qualities she’s looking for in a suitor, the reality star revealed her non-negotiables in PEOPLE’s exclusive first look video in July.

“I’m very picky about a man being a gentleman,” she explained. “Somebody with a big heart, somebody who is generous and also somebody who’s humble.”

The school administrator also told her family, “I’m not here to replace Dad, I just want our family to be whole again. So, let’s cheers: cheers to a great adventure!”

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The Golden Bachelorette premieres Wednesday, Sept. 18 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC