While The Golden Bachelor was successful with Bachelor Nation, the issues that came up with Gerry Turner throughout the season turned out to be nothing more than Bachelor producers setting him up to take the fall for them. The Golden Bachelor season 1 was a major development for Bachelor Nation, who’d been hoping for a more mature spin-off for years. Watching older people fall in love from the fairy-tale lens of The Bachelor was exciting for viewers, and the majority of Bachelor Nation was ready to see more once they met Gerry and heard about his difficult yet hopeful backstory.
Throughout the season, Gerry and got to know the gorgeous cast through a series of sweet dates and open conversations. While the cast of The Golden Bachelor wound up being nominated for an Emmy because of their dynamic nature, Gerry could only move forward with one woman after the series. Choosing to propose to Theresa Nist, Gerry’s persona on the series came to a screeching halt just days before the show’s finale when reports of deception surrounding his life before the show. Though Gerry’s reputation took a nosedive, it became clear months later that Bachelor producers were actually at fault.
The Golden Bachelor Producers Painted Gerry In A Light That Was Too Perfect
They Wanted Him To Look Like The Perfect Lead
As he moved through the season, Gerry seemed like he was one of the most emotionally vulnerable, sweet leads that The Bachelor franchise had ever seen, which is why Bachelor Nation was so shocked to hear about his relationship history toward the end of the season. After sharing that he hadn’t dated since his wife passed suddenly in 2017, it became abundantly clear that Gerry had been in relationships after her death. While Gerry was painted as the bad guy in the breakup, Bachelor Nation was more scandalized by his apparent lies.
Throughout The Golden Bachelor season 1, there were moments where Gerry could’ve been allowed to clarify his past, but it was clear that Bachelor producers wanted him to come off like an unassuming, unfailingly loyal person without much of a dating history. Despite knowing that the reality was far more interesting than the fabrication, Bachelor producers had painted Gerry in a light that made him seem like the “perfect” partner throughout the season, even though they were aware that wasn’t his reality. Creating a hero, Bachelor Nation had no choice but to make Gerry a villain when they found faults.
The Golden Bachelor Producers Knew Gerry’s Reputation Would Falter
They Knew He Couldn’t Outrun His Past
Although The Golden Bachelor was a much lighter show than the traditional Bachelor, it was clear that the relationships formed in the series were going to be deeper, quicker, and hopefully more lasting than they were in the original series. After Gerry chose Theresa, his past returning to haunt him quickly thereafter spun the media into a frenzy, and Bachelor producers tried to fix things by pushing the couple into the spotlight without answering about Gerry’s past. Even so, Bachelor producers had to know that Gerry’s perfect persona would falter, even without his past coming back to play a role.
The Golden Bachelor Producers Didn’t Protect Gerry When Bachelor Nation Came For Him
They Didn’t Try To Save Gerry’s Reputation
Although Bachelor Nation has recently started to understand that Gerry wasn’t at fault for his poor reputation, things were tough for The Golden Bachelor lead for some time after the show. When Gerry and Theresa got married and divorced within three months, viewers turned on Gerry and felt that it must be his fault, not knowing the difficulties that the Bachelor lead was facing behind the scenes. Gerry, who was diagnosed with an incurable cancer, was eviscerated by the press, but he wasn’t given a helping hand from The Golden Bachelor producers. Instead, he was left to fend for himself.
