‘The Golden Bachelor’ Episode 8 Recap: ‘When Was the Last Time You Had Sex?’

Gerry gets steamy in Costa Rica with the women of his dreams, and secrets are revealed

Tim Appelo,

AARP

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Published November 16, 2023

Gerry Turner

Photo by John Fleenor/Disney

Warning: Spoilers ahead!

In the Nov. 16 episode of The Golden Bachelor, the two remaining contestants got up close and personal with Gerry Turner, 72. After two possibly passionate nights in romantically steamy Costa Rica, he broke down in tears, regretting he ever got himself into this romantic predicament in the first place.

Here are some highlights:

Leslie elicited the funniest line in ‘Golden Bachelor’ history

When Gerry challenged fitness instructor Leslie, 64, to ask him one of “the hard questions,” she said, “OK, I have a question for you. When's the last time you had sex?”

“Well, I need to clarify,” he replied. “Are you talking about by myself or with someone?”

She meant with someone else. “[It’s been] a long time,” he said.

Theresa standing next to Gerry Turner in Costa Rica on "The Golden Bachelor."

(Left to right) Theresa and Gerry Turner

John Fleenor/Disney

Theresa hasn’t had sex in nine years

We don't know whether Theresa or Leslie had fantastic sweetness with Gerry in the Fantasy Suite, but financial services pro Theresa, 69, said, “I have not been with anyone since my husband,” who died in 2014 after 42 years of marriage. “So tonight, if we did decide together to be together…It's a decision I don't take lightly at all.”

Gerry explained what the Fantasy Suite means to him

“Do people my age still knock boots and have a good time behind closed doors?” he asked rhetorically. “Joking aside, [the Fantasy Suite] is the opportunity to talk without filters. I really love the idea of pillow talk. The level of communication goes way up, because the barriers are way down.”

Gerry Turner and Leslie standing together in Costa Rica on "The Golden Bachelor."

(Left to right) Gerry Turner and Leslie

John Fleenor/Disney

He confessed his true feelings for Leslie

“Little by little with Leslie, it's like the onion has been peeled back and every layer has been a different color.” he said. “She's so playful and I think so authentic. She leaned into my chest and I felt a shudder. True raw emotion and it just came out.”

Leslie felt another raw emotion: Overwhelming terror

Fighting back her fear of heights, she rappelled with him down a 170-foot waterfall — he told her he was proud of her courage. “I gave birth three times, I should be able to do this,” she said. “I don't want to get hurt. Oh my god! But Gerry makes me feel safe.”

Emotionally, Leslie is anything but safe

Scarred by two failed marriages, she burst into tears when he said the words “’Til death do us part.” “Every birthday I say, next year, I'm not going to be alone, I'm going to find somebody," she wailed. "Every year, it’s like Groundhog Day. I'm alone on my birthday. And I don't want to be alone anymore.”

Gerry is totally in love with Leslie. Also Theresa.

“There's a nice warm, safe, secure feeling with Theresa,” he told the show’s host. “Theresa has a hole in her heart just like I do. She lost her spouse. We get each other.”

"The Golden Bachelor" host Jesse Palmer sitting across from Gerry Turner outside in Costa Rica.

"The Golden Bachelor" host Jesse Palmer talking with Gerry Turner.

John Fleenor/Disney

So did they or didn’t they?

Gerry has no intention of satisfying our salacious curiosity. “People want to know what happens in these Fantasy Suites,” he said, with a firm grasp of the obvious. “It's none of their business.”

But there were some clues strewn for us to evaluate. “I will say this: the relationship with Leslie was significantly improved through the course of our night last night. I saw more of her – a lot more.” Hubba hubba (perhaps)!

After Theresa’s night with Gerry — she gave him the right side of the bed because she noticed he’d said that’s what he likes — she enthused, “Last night was very special and eye opening, and he saw a side of me he didn't know existed.”

Besides any physical revelations, Gerry learned an important thing or two about the women

Leslie told him she doesn’t want to leave her kids and grandkids in Minneapolis to move to his place in Indianapolis, but suggested they might shuttle between them. “Instead of bicoastal, we can be bi-midwest.” He liked that she said they could figure it out — but does that mean he really wants her to move to Indianapolis?

Theresa proudly told him how she went from homemaker to day trader to full-time financial services professional with seven security licenses, beating out 30 college grads for the job.

“As long as I didn't really have a man in my life, I would continue working,” she said. “But if this became something if you gave me a reason to stop, I would stop.”

Hm, sounds like advantage Theresa.

Gerry has no idea what to do with the opportunity of a lifetime

Theresa, 69, a financial services professional from Shrewsbury, New Jersey.

Ricky Middlesworth/ABC

“Theresa is so kind, so nice, a good soul,” he said. “And I don't want to do or say anything that hurts her. But at the same time I'm thinking — what's Leslie doing right now?

Leslie, 64, a fitness instructor from Minneapolis.

Ricky Middlesworth/ABC

“With Leslie, it would be a very exciting life. She's adventurous and she looks out for me and I look out for her. But Theresa and I have this bond. We know what the other person is feeling. We know what they've been through.”

But Gerry knows one thing for sure: He wishes the Golden Bachelor was anyone but him

“This is an impossible task…and I’m running out of time,” he mourned. “The only time I've ever felt worse in my whole life was when my wife passed away, and this is a close second. If I’d known this would be how much pain I would cause, I would have never taken the first step in this journey!”

Tough luck, Gerry! On the Nov. 30 finale, you’re going to take one last step to bliss — and stomp the heart of a woman you love.

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Tim Appelo covers entertainment and is the film and TV critic for AARP. Previously, he was the entertainment editor at Amazon, video critic at Entertainment Weekly, and a critic and writer for The Hollywood Reporter, People, MTV, The Village Voice and LA Weekly.