Reality star and comedian Katie Thurston, who appeared on Season 25 of The Bachelor and starred on Season 17 of The Bachelorette, can stop looking for love on TV. She announced her engagement on Sunday, Sept. 25 to comedian Jeff Arcuri on Instagram. The couple went Insta-official this past June, and by July, Katie called him “an extraordinary human who is the kindest man I have ever met” in a sweet post.
Katie Thurston Announces Engagement To Jeff Arcuri
Katie Thurston’s very public road to love took some hits since she appeared on The Bachelor in 2021. That season, she vied for the love of Matt James, eventually getting eliminated in week six. A few months later, Katie was announced as the lead for theThe Bachelorette, where she got engaged to Blake Moynes at the end of the season. However, their engagement was short-lived, as they announced their split three months later.
After splitting with Blake, Katie Thurston moved on with another contestant from her season, John Hersey. They also split after a little less than a year. Katie took her reality pursuits to another show, as host of FBoy Island. It’s here where she met and started dating Vince Xu, but by December of 2023, they also split.
Katie Thurston began dropping hints of a new love interest earlier in 2024. In January, she posted to her Instagram stories that she was taking “things slow” with a mysterious new man. She continued to tease the new relationship on an appearance the Your Mom & Dad podcast, saying she was seeing someone, but wanted to keep it private for now.
“‘I’m seeing somebody. I haven’t actually said this yet… You heard it here first. [I’ve been] taken off the market.’ Thurston expressed that she is ‘happily snatched up’ and currently enjoying the ‘honeymoon phase.’ However, she said she’s not ready to reveal the name of her beau publicly, explaining she’s enjoying the privacy that didn’t come with her past televised relationships.”
The privacy didn’t last. She hard launched that new relationship in June of 2024, posting pics of her and comedian Jeff Arcuri, who boasts over a million followers on the app.
“Safe to say he’s making it to hometowns next week,” she captioned that post, accompanied by photos of her and Jeff kissing.
By July, Katie Thurston shared more insight into her relationship with Jeff, posting photos, including a screenshot of a text conversation between the two in April. She captioned that post, “Three months ago I thought @jarcuri was ghosting me. Turns out he was in the hospital. Whoops. Here is a glimpse of this extraordinary human who is the kindest man I have ever met. He’s my love, my protector, my peace, my healer, and of course, my laughter. I never knew two souls could collide the way ours have. You were worth the wait.”
Since leaving reality TV, Katie began hitting the comedy circuit, performing at open mics and shows throughout Southern California. She told the Los Angeles Times that comedy had always been a passion, though she never imagined it being her full-time job.
“I really thought I was going to be in my banking and finance career — that’s what I was in for the last 10 years — and comedy would be a passion project. And I would just continue my life in Washington.
If you told me that all the things that happened in the last two years were gonna happen, I would be like, ‘You’re crazy.'” The paper described Katie Thurston’s comedy as “confessional, engaging, and self-deprecating,” many of the same characteristics that made her a beloved figure in the Bachelor Nation franchise.
Following Katie Thurston’s engagement post, the comments section flooded with well-wishes from fans and reality stars. Natalie Joy, who is married to The Bachelor‘s Nick Viall, commented, “There she is!!!! Congratulations, honey!!!!,” while Love Is Blind‘s Giannina Gibelli wrote, “OMG so happy for you!!!”
Colette “Lexi” Young, from The Bachelor, wrote “Crying!!! You’re so deserving! I’m so happy for you!!!” And Bachelor Nation favorite Tayshia Adams commented, “Congrats Katie!!!”
