‘The Golden Bachelor’: Gerry Turner Hinted to His Parents That Parts of the Show Were Fake
ABC’s The Golden Bachelor is over, and Gerry Turner chose Theresa Nist as the next great love of his life. Gerry and Theresa seem like the perfect match, as they both went through the grief of losing a spouse. Fans adored watching Gerry’s journey, as it seemed more authentic than previous seasons of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. But Gerry’s parents claimed their son hinted that aspects of the show weren’t entirely truthful.
‘The Golden Bachelor’ star Gerry Turner told his father and stepmom that he ‘followed a script’
The Golden Bachelor star Gerry Turner ended the season happily engaged to Theresa Nist. Viewers loved watching the journey of the oldest lead to date, as it started with light-hearted fun. However, as the season progressed, we noticed a tonal shift. Gerry fell in love with multiple women, and the breakups felt more devastating than ever. By the time the finale aired, Gerry’s runner-up, Leslie Fhima, felt lied to and led astray by the lead.
Gerry sobbed during the finale following Leslie’s breakup. The tears streaming down his face were certainly real as he told Jesse Palmer that he hadn’t felt this low since the death of his wife, Toni Turner. But his father, Everett Turner, and his stepmom, Norma Turner, said Gerry hinted that he had to follow a “script” in the show.
“He told me, don’t believe everything you see on television,” Norma told The Sun. “He said, ‘I got to follow the script.’”
Everett echoed the same sentiment. “He said, sometimes he has to say what they want him to say,” he added. “He said it’s a once-in-a-lifetime deal” that was “tough at times.”
“He did a good job doing what he was supposed to do,” Gerry’s father noted. “I wouldn’t even attempt to do something like that.”
Producers historically use tactics to get leads and contestants to open up to the camera
The Golden Bachelor wasn’t a fake production, as Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist really did fall in love and are now planning their January wedding. But production indeed uses certain tactics to influence what happens in each episode. Past leads and contestants in The Bachelor and The Bachelorette discussed this, as did former producers.
“The end game … is getting a contestant to open up,” former producer Ben Hatta said in the book Bachelor Nation, according to Life & Style. “To do that, the contestant must feel like they can trust you.”
Contestant Bennett Jordan wants contestants to remember that they’re filming a reality TV show, and that comes with consequences. “I think that it’s a reality television show production,” he said. “If anyone knows anything about that — or if they’ve ever thought about it — I think people know that reality TV is not real life. I think producers’ jobs are to produce entertainment and storylines. So, I wouldn’t use the word manipulation by any means. … I think you have to take everything with a grain of salt, use your brain, hopefully, show your best colors, and realize what you’re getting into.”
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