He’s finally here.
After years in development, the senior citizen spinoff of “The Bachelor” is coming.
ABC has unveiled the identity of the star of “The Golden Bachelor” as 71-year-old Gerry Turner, who will be the first-ever mature star of “The Bachelor” franchise in its two decades on the air.
From the looks of the key art for “The Golden Bachelor,” the leading man certainly is more senior than the typical cast on the franchise. The marketing materials for the upcoming season, which debuts this fall, show the back of the mystery man’s head — and we can see some salt-and-pepper in his hair and beard.
When “The Golden Bachelor” was announced, social media commenters wondered just how senior this man would be: Would he only be slightly older than the 20-something or 30-somethings that are historically on “The Bachelor” and “The Bachelorette” — or would Bachelor Nation actually get a season of television centering around senior citizens?
ABC delivered on its promise with a senior citizen show, casting Turner as its star for the the spinoff, which will showcase a “whole new kind of love story — one for the golden years.” The network’s synopsis says a “hopeless romantic is given a second chance at love in the search for a partner with whom to share the sunset years of life.”
Casting calls for a senior citizen “Bachelor” had been airing during “The Bachelor” shows for years, keeping viewers wondering when, or if, the show would ever happen.
In the first trailer for “The Golden Bachelor” (watch above), Turner is introduced to America, standing in front of a mirror wearing a suit and hearing aids.
The voiceover in the trailer says: “He posts his thirst traps in a leather-bound album. His DMs have postage. He gets the early bird special any time he wants. If you call him, he’ll answer the phone. He doesn’t have gray hair — he has wisdom highlights. Florida wants to retire and move to him. He’s Gerry.”
Disney’s top unscripted TV exec, Rob Mills, previously spoke to Variety about the excitement behind the series. “It’s such a different way of doing ‘The Bachelor’ because these people are just at a totally different place in their lives,” Mills had said. “There is an interesting thing about people who have hit the other end of the spectrum, who’ve lived their lives, they’ve raised their kids, some have been widowed or divorced and maybe some have never been in love. We thought that would be an interesting dynamic through the ‘Bachelor’ prism.”
“The Golden Bachelor” marks the latest expansion in “The Bachelor” franchise, which has aired 60 seasons since premiering in 2002, including the flagship series “The Bachelor,” “The Bachelorette” and “Bachelor In Paradise.” Ratings for the franchise have been decreasing over the years — as is the case with many other legacy network shows — but “The Golden Bachelor” has generated much discussion and has sparked new interest with many fans expressing excitement over the new twist on the long-running show.