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Who Is Steven McBee? 5 Things to Know About 'Joe Millionaire' Star

New year, new millionaire. Steven McBee is one of two men searching for love on the new reality show Joe Millionaire: For Richer or Poorer.

The series is a reboot of the original Joe Millionaire, which premiered in January 2003 and followed a group of women as they competed for the love of a man they believed was wealthy. In the new version, there are two eligible bachelors looking for romance — but only one of them is rich.

Steven, 27, will appear alongside fellow “millionaire” Kurt Sowers on For Richer or Poorer, premiering on Thursday, January 6. Though fans of the original series are excited to see how the new one compares, the new bachelors weren’t that familiar with their show’s source material.

“We had no idea what the original show was,” Steven exclusively told Us Weekly ahead of the show’s premiere. “Whenever we got down there on set and they dropped the whole, ‘This is the reincarnation of Joe Millionaire.’ I was like, ‘Great, who’s Joe? What is Joe Millionaire?’ I had no idea.”

The original Joe Millionaire was a ratings hit, but it also drew backlash because the contestants were told a lie about lead Evan Marriott‘s nonexistent fortune. According to the new bachelors, For Richer or Poorer isn’t so misleading. For starters, the women know going into it that only one of them has a high net worth.

“In this remake, there’s no lie being told whatsoever,” Steven explained to Us. “They know one of us is wealthier than the other. They just don’t know which is which, which in the grand scheme of things shouldn’t matter.”

Kurt, for his part, isn’t concerned about what detractors might have to say about the series. “There’s always gonna be critics,” he told Us. “I don’t know if I really even care to correct them in their criticism.”

Both of the new Joes keep a relatively low profile online, but the basics are out there. Kurt is the CEO of a development organization based in Charlotte, North Carolina, while Steven is the president of a farm and cattle company located in Gallatin, Missouri — and neither was super familiar with reality TV.

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“I thought everything was always fake,” Steven told Us of his previous beliefs about the genre. “I can tell you from being there, experiencing it — the chemistry and the emotions that are seen onscreen are 100 percent real.”

Keep scrolling to learn more about Steven:

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Zora Stowers

Update: 2024-05-18