When it comes to reality television, X marks the spot for Peter Weber — literally. In fact, the former “Bachelor” star finds himself joining “Destination X” on Tuesday night alongside “Love Island” fan-favorite JaNa Craig, much to the surprise of the remaining eight (or rather, seven) contestants.
“This, without a doubt, was just the most incredible experience of a lifetime, the most fun thing I’ve ever done in my entire life, the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” Weber told TheWrap ahead of his debut in Episode 3. “It definitely pushed me in so many different ways and it was cool to be able to pull a bit from my experience on ‘The Traitors’ — not so much ‘The Bachelor.’”
“I feel very fortunate to have found myself in this whole kind of gaming world since I never really considered myself a gamer. I’ve really taken a liking to it and just had the time of my life playing these games,” he continued. “But this one specifically just set the bar so high, unforgettable. I got to see things that I never would have imagined I would have ever been able to see. The opportunity and experience of a lifetime.”
After America fell in love with Pilot Pete on Season 15 of “The Bachelorette” with Hannah Brown, he went on to land Season 24 of “The Bachelor.” However, now that he’s gotten a taste of more competitive reality TV following this new show and his star-making turn in Season 2 of “The Traitors,” would Weber ever dive back into the public dating pool?
“I wouldn’t ever do another love show, that definitely is not my forte,” he admitted. “But the whole competition aspect was a sweet surprise, a pleasant surprise to see how much I really did enjoy it. Plus, being able to have my competitive nature really come out, that’s where I kind of thrive more. It was a joy to watch and it’s so cool to see what the show has become. I’m really, really happy for that franchise.”
Outside of his work in reality television, Weber is indeed a pilot — a career that could prove beneficial for his game, considering the NBC show is all about figuring out where you are in the world.
“I definitely thought it was going to be more of an advantage,” he revealed. “Where it did help me was I brushed up a little bit on celestial navigation and using stars. What I mean by that is — it didn’t always work, because you had to have a clear night and you had to have a straight view of the North Star — but I did my best to implant in my memory a couple key cities all throughout Europe and their latitude and tried my best to gauge with any information I gathered at that point.”
“And then anytime we were at airports, it was always telling because you could hear the sound of the engine,” Weber continued. “There was one point where I was actually able to recognize a departure corridor that I had flown at a certain spot in Europe. That was really huge for me.”
As noted above, also joining “Destination X” on Tuesday is “Love Island” Season 6 and “Love Island: Beyond the Villa” star JaNa Craig (and they are both stepping in after fellow reality TV alum Josh Martinez was surprisingly eliminated in the series premiere).
“She is such an absolute sweetheart. I really enjoyed getting to know her and our friendship. That was a highlight, for sure,” Weber gushed. “We just naturally put a lot of trust in each other from the beginning, because we were going into it a little bit at a disadvantage joining a couple of weeks in and everyone else has already created some relationships and alliances. So we definitely made a point of sticking together and it was fun to work with her.”
Plus, this is now the second competition show of Weber’s to be hosted by a famous actor — first Alan Cumming on “The Traitors” and now Jeffrey Dean Morgan.
“Alan obviously set the bar really high, but they both do such a good job,” the 33-year-old shared. “Jeffrey Dean Morgan, he was just the perfect selection for this show. He has that level of badass-ness, but then mystery and comedic timing, too. He’s just a fun guy to go along the whole journey with and we ended up bonding about our mutual love of the Seattle Seahawks.”
“I’m really thankful they gave me this second shot here with ‘Destination X,’” Weber concluded. “I’m super stoked for it, I really think it’s going to be another home run.”
“Destination X” airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET on NBC before streaming next day on Peacock.
