The Golden Bachelor has earned the highest ratings that The Bachelor franchise has seen in three years and when a show is successful, others start copying.
For those unaware, The Golden Bachelor is a show in which women — mostly in their golden years — try to win the heart of 71-year-old Gerry Turner. It’s basically a sweet grandparents version of The Bachelor that’s easy to enjoy.
Although The Golden Bachelor pulled off a classy and charming show, other such reality shows that go “golden” could end up being equally charming or could utterly fail but either way they would likely be worth watching. So, with a little bit of humor and a little bit of charm, here’s a list of 10 reality shows that need a grandparents’ version.
10. Golden Big Brother
How different would Big Brother be with contestants who were all in their older years? The challenges might bring endless humor and the surprises that the Head of the Household gets — such as letters from their family — might truly be the best tear-jerking part of the show.
Loyalties and vetoes could get strange but I have a feeling everyone would be really honest and tell everyone else who they’re voting off days ahead of time. For that reason, the straight up honesty could change the entire show when you consider it would be like a version of Big Brother without the lying.
9. Golden Survivor
This could be a disaster, considering the extreme physical challenges. It might be the first time in the show’s history that no one wins.
Truthfully, however, some of the best contestants on Survivor are not at all south of 30. The oldest winner was almost 60, so it could be a grandparents vs grandchildren showdown. Let’s face it, everyone would probably be rooting for the grandparents — and they might just win it.
8. Golden Kitchen Nightmares
My grandfather was a walking kitchen nightmare. His solution was to stay away from the kitchen altogether. Smart man.
I can’t imagine the disaster my grandfather would make in Kitchen Nightmares. In fact, it’s possible Gordon Ramsay would just outright lose his mind more than any before.
However, the truth is that some of the best chefs in the world are the most experienced. So, they can also have 70-year-old chefs come in and take over, and I would almost guarantee that those dining would be blown away. It could be an outstanding opportunity for some golden chefs to show the world how it’s done.
7. Golden Lip Sync Battle
Lip Sync Battle may run into problems because people naturally forget lyrics, but the older we get, the more forgetful we become, so a golden version of this show could be humorous, to see what lyrics people come up with. Maybe an instrumental song will win, such as a wordless classical tune from Mozart. I can perfectly recite those lyrics.
However, if it becomes grandparents lip syncing with their grandchildren, then this might just work as a fun family event.
6. Golden American Idol
This would be an outstanding show. The music industry is dominated by 15-35 year-olds. However, of the best musicians I’ve heard are over 50, because they have decades of perfecting their craft. Some of the world’s best singers are also over 50. The more I think about the more I think that a Golden American Idol could end up unintentionally being the standard version of the show.
Perhaps on The Golden Voice would be fun to see the judges turn their chairs around every single time to no one younger than 60, especially if they weren’t told beforehand that under 60 is not allowed. How would they react in the long run? It would be interesting to see.
5. The Golden Amazing Race
One problem here is that this show requires endurance and energy, so they’d better find some spry contestants or this will be the The Amazingly Slow Race. Most of the 70+ year-old contestants probably wouldn’t be running anywhere. They’d be casually walking and taking breaks every 10 minutes. Theymight get confused over google maps and likely think GPS stands for “Grand Parent Show.”
They may not be able to travel around the world, unless it’s on a cruise ship, so maybe the race should should start at the barn and end at Main Street. The twist at the end of this version of The Amazing Race could be that the winning team is the one who finishes last.
4. The Golden Real World
This is the only show I can think of that has the potential to be both the single most boring show ever, or the single most entertaining show ever. I don’t want to just explain it as “a bunch of old people sitting around,” but that could be exactly what it becomes. Some might head off to play bingo on Tuesday night, but this could also be a heartwarming show of grandparents who begin some truly golden friendships. Let’s face it, regardless of what happens during all of these shows, the finales to all of the golden versions on this countdown would be much more heartwarming despite being far less dramatic, and that’s a good thing.
3. Golden FBoy Island
How can I resist putting this on the list? I’m not going to explain this stupid show in detail, but if you don’t know what the “F” in FBoy Island stands for then let’s just say it rhymes with “stuck,” which is what a lot of grandparent contestants on this show might end up being while showing off their skills. Golden FBoy Island could end up being the most bizarre reality show ever (not that it’s ever going to happen), but it will definitively be the single best FBoy Island season, as far as I’m concerned.
2. Golden Love & Hip Hop
What can be better than being in your golden years and pursuing true love and a rap career at the same time? We can even call it Golden Love & Hip Replacement Hop. ‘Ol Dirty Bastard would be a totally different rapper on this show. The rapper retirement home can take over the industry as the rappin’ grandparents listen to golden rap oldies songs.
1. Golden Love is Blind
How great is a show where you get to know people, but actually not meet them in person until the end? On Love is Blind, contestants spend time in a room together, but with a thin wall separating them, which allows them to have a conversation despite being on the other side of the wall.
It’s possible that on a golden version of this show, “What?! What was that?!” could end up being the most frequently asked question. If they resort to strictly having phone calls, then maybe it gets somewhere, but it could also be the most interesting golden reality show possible, because most 75-year olds probably don’t care as much about looks as they once did. It could be a way to connect people in their golden years and see real relationships form. Everyone would be rooting for success stories.
So, are these golden ideas, or are they just foolish to consider? Some are just fun, but I wouldn’t mind seeing some of these reality shows do a golden season, or even a golden episode, because you’ll never know what to expect.