"The Bachelor" has been renewed for a 16th season, which will air in early 2012, an ABC spokesperson said on Monday, March 14, hours before the finale of the current installment of the hit dating reality show.

On the episode, which airs at 8 p.m. ET, viewers will see Brad Womack having to choose between finalists Emily Maynard and Chantal O'Brien. (See spoilers below)

"The Bachelorette," the show's spin-off show that features a main female contestant, has been granted a seventh season, which will air on May 23, while "Bachelor Pad," a hybrid of the two programs, was given a second.

The star of "The Bachelorette" will be revealed on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" on Monday night. The talk show airs on weeknights at 12 a.m. ET

Womack famously stirred controversy in 2007 during his first time on the series, when he rejected both finalists, Jenni Croft and DeAnna Pappas, on the season 11 finale. Womack told OnTheRedCarpet.com recently that it has been so long since he's seen the woman he%

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