Golden Bachelorette's Joan Vassos Brushes Off Speculation Gerry Turner Wanted a 2nd Chance: 'We Are Really Good Friends'

Vassos made her television debut on Turner's season of 'The Golden Bachelor', but voluntarily left the series early to prioritize her family

By

Esther Kang

 
Esther Kang is a writer at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since 2023 and has previously worked for publications like TMZ and TooFab.
Published on January 22, 2025 09:53PM EST
(L) Joan Vassos and Gerry Turner. Photo:James Clark/Disney via Getty; Jason Davis/WireImage
Joan Vassos isn't interested in thinking about what may have been.

On the latest episode of the Two Jersey Js podcast, The Golden Bachelorette alum, 62, put any speculation that Gerry Turner wanted to give their relationship a second chance to bed.

Vassos made her television debut on the inaugural season of The Golden Bachelor. Though she and Turner initially felt sparks on the dating show, her journey to find love was cut short. The mother of four voluntarily left to help her daughter after she experienced postpartum depression following the birth of her baby.

(L) Joan Vassos and Gerry Turner on 'The Golden Bachelor'.John Fleenor/ABC
At the end of the season, Turner found love with Theresa Nist and the two tied the knot in a televised wedding special in January 2024. But after just three months of marriage, the couple announced their decision to split during a joint interview on Good Morning America, which aired on April 12, 2024 — the same day he officially filed for divorce.

Though she "had a connection" with Turner, Vassos revealed that their relationship had evolved into a "really good friendship" on the podcast.

"We are a really good friend still," she added. "We stay in touch."

When podcast hosts Jackie Goldschneider and Jennifer Fessler theorized that Turner may have wanted to give things a second shot after his split from Nist, Vassos wasn't interested in discussing the possibility.

"I'm not gonna comment," she simply answered.

(L) Joan Vassos and Chock Chapple on 'The Golden Bachelorette'.Disney/Gilles Mingasson
At the end of her season, Vassos got her happy ending and left the series engaged to Chock Chapple. In a joint interview with her fiancé in November 2024, the school administrator told PEOPLE she would consider getting married on television, but had no current plans to walk down the aisle.

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“I originally said that I wanted for it to be small with just our friends and family, but as I think a little bit more about it, I somewhat think that maybe we would do a televised wedding,” she explained. “I feel like everybody that has gone through this whole journey with us, has been with us for the last few months watching this all unfold, it'd be fun for them to see Chapter 2 of us actually starting a life together. They deserve to see the next part of this.”

She continued, “We haven't put a ton of thought in the wedding. We're really looking forward to just being a couple out in the world and being just normal people living life for at least a couple of months, and then we'll start thinking wedding.”