Luke Pell was practically on a plane to be the next ‘Bachelor,’ he says — until they picked Nick Viall

It seems Luke Pell was all set to be the next Bachelor — until he wasn’t. And then Nick Viall was. And is.

According to the “Bachelorette” fan favorite from Joelle Fletcher’s season, who spoke to Us Weekly, contracts had been agreed to and he was checked in for his next-day flight to L.A. when he got a call from “The Bachelor” producers late Sunday night.

“They said ABC had decided to quote-unquote go in a different direction,” he told the outlet Thursday. “I was supposed to fly out Monday morning at 9 a.m. I had my bags packed and everything. Most dramatic Monday ever!”

Less than 48 hours later, Bachelor Nation frequent-flier Viall got the surprise nod on the “Bachelor in Paradise” after-show. Even spoiler site RealitySteve.com was surprised, having called out Pell as the pick for two full months.

“Thx for all the love sometimes we are faced w/unexpected changes,” Nashville resident Pell tweeted Wednesday along with an image reading, “Trust God’s timing. He has a plan for everything.”

“I’m happy to be back in Nash excited for the future,” he continued. So yeah, Luke’s still single, ladies, and now you know where he can be found. In, um, “Nash.”

Speaking of spoilers, at this point anyone who wants to be surprised by the results of the “Bachelor in Paradise” finale should stop reading — anyone who hasn’t already figured out that Nick as “The Bachelor” means things didn’t work out for him and Jen Saviano on the hedonistic summer series.

Late “Paradise” arrival Lauren H., a.k.a. Lauren Himle from Ben Higgins’ season of the series, shared some dish about Viall during an interview Wednesday on Detroit radio station WXTY-FM. Viall and Saviano, who’d been a thing in “Paradise,” ultimately broke up on the show, she said, but he and Lauren’s “great friend” Jen continued on in a relationship after the season wrapped. Which would suggest that the 35-year-old wasn’t exactly single when he was cast this week as “The Bachelor” — a job for which availability is required — and that he became single very quickly.

A source vouched for the last-minute casting change-up Wednesday to “Entertainment Tonight” but had a different take on the alleged last-minute breakup.

“Producers had Luke in mind and he was all set to be ‘The Bachelor,’” the source said. “It all happened really quick. It wasn’t even a thought on the table that Nick would be the next Bachelor. He had no idea they were considering him, and he really didn’t think it was an option.”

Viall and Saviano, however, are still friends and were never an official couple, the source told the outlet, and therefore couldn’t officially have a breakup.

Semantics?

Jen knew that Nick “was kind of manipulating her toward the end,” said radio-show guest Lauren H., not to be confused with Lauren B., whose reality show with Ben H., “Ben and Lauren: Happily Ever After” premieres in October on Freeform.

“This just happened,” Lauren H. explained. “They were solid a week ago.”

Hey, so were Luke and the “Bachelor” gig.

Follow Christie D’Zurilla on Twitter @theCDZ.

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