Gerry Turner vs Theresa Nist: Who is Winning in Life After The Golden Bachelor Turned into a Villain With Their Divorce

The Golden Bachelor is a spin-off show of ABC’s dating reality television show The Bachelor and features the cast of senior citizens as contestants. 72-year-old Gerry Turner, a widower from Hudson, Indiana, was the first Golden Bachelor who, towards the end of the show, decided to propose to 70-year-old Theresa Nist. The finale episode was one of the most watched episodes in The Bachelor franchise since 2021.

The couple got married in a television ceremony dubbed The Golden Wedding in January, marking the ninth TV wedding for the franchise. However, after three months of their marriage, the couple announced that they were dissolving their marriage in April 2024. The former couple cited irreconcilable differences as the reason for their divorce. A recent report clarifies where the exes stand currently.

Reports suggest Theresa Nist is living her life while Gerry Turner tries his best to move on

The first edition of The Golden Bachelor saw Gerry Turner, a retired restaurateur, becoming the lead man looking for love after his wife of 43 years, Toni Turner, passed away in 2017 after a brief illness. He found love in Theresa Nist, who had been married to her high school sweetheart, William Nist, for 43 years until he passed away in 2014.

The former couple not only met on the reality show but found solace in one another, and viewers witnessed their dreamy and golden wedding in January 2024. During his vows, Turner said to Nist with tears in his eyes (via THR),

I’ve learned you are the woman I can’t live without. I promise that if you’re my partner in life, I will make you the happiest woman on Earth.

Nist, for her part, mentioned that she loves Turner’s heart and soul, smiles, and laughter. She added that she promises to be his calm in a storm, comforting him in every situation. Nist noted that they are just going to have fun for the rest of the days they have on this Earth. However, after three months, the newly married couple announced on Good Morning America that they had decided to dissolve their marriage. They said,

We’ve looked closely at our situation. and we’ve kind of come to the conclusion mutually that it’s probably time for us to dissolve our marriage. We have received so much love and support from so many people who watched The Golden Bachelor, and I don’t think we can tell you how many people told us that it gave them so much hope. We want none of that to change for anybody.

The couple cited irreconcilable differences as the reason for their divorce. However, it has been reported that they never lived under the same roof, i.e., Turner lived in a lakeside Indiana dream house he had built with his late wife, while Nist lived in New Jersey near her daughter and grandson. The decision to not be able to decide where to live, contributed greatly to their decision to end their marriage.

Now, according to reports by ScreenRant, where it appears that Turner is trying his best to move on in his life, Nist has already moved on and is living it. The publication mentioned Nist continues to work at her full-time job, but she also helps her daughter Jen, who runs a photo booth at a wedding and is just enjoying her life. Turner on his part feels saddened that his second marriage was short lived.

Theresa Nist hopes ex-Gerry Turner finds his person

In an interview with the New York Post, Theresa Nist clarified that there are no hard feelings towards her now ex-husband, Gerry Turner, adding that they don’t speak regularly, but she wishes him all the best. She added that she has seen that Turner is surrounded by a lot of friends, which makes her happy for him. She added,

I truly hope he finds his person because he wants that and he deserves that, and I am rooting for him. I’m in his corner. I think we need to go through this life with a partner. It’s so much more fun. I want to do so many things, and, it would be so much more fun to do it with a partner, so absolutely I’m open to it.

During his interview with ABC7 News, the Golden Bachelor shared that despite his short-lived romance with Theresa Nist, he does not regret any part of it. He shared,

The experience was what it was. Looking back and trying to change things, it’s easy to have a 20/20 vision, but it doesn’t work that way. When you’re in the moment and you’re swept away in the energy—and you’re doing the best you can, certainly with all the input you have—I really can’t say that I would change anything.

A report published by THR about Turner’s ‘dating history’ just a few days before the finale of The Golden Bachelor put him under the microscope. The report mentioned that Turner’s story was painted on the show that he didn’t date anyone after his wife passed away but a woman who requested anonymity identified as his girlfriend of two years.

When he was asked about it post-finale-conference, Turner simply said that there was just enough truth in the article but not fit with all the good things in his life. However, the report did paint the widower in a bad light, fans almost calling him the villain in his short lived marriage with Nist.

However, Nist clarified in GMA that the report did not play any part in their decision to split. The Golden Bachelor Season 1 can be streamed on Hulu.