The debut season of “The Golden Bachelor,” ABC’s dating show featuring contestants 60 and older, concluded on Thursday night with its lead, Gerry Turner, a 72-year-old retiree and pickleball enthusiast from Indiana, proposing to Theresa Nist, 70, a financial services professional from Shrewsbury, N.J.

“I know how sometimes it feels like the whole world thinks that love is only for the young,” Ms. Nist said moments before accepting his proposal. “And quite honestly, at the age of 70, I was beginning to feel that myself.”

Meeting Mr. Turner changed that, she said. “I feel that for us, life isn’t over. The best is yet to come.”

Mr. Turner and Ms. Nist announced during the finale that they planned to marry on Jan. 4 in a televised ceremony. “At our age, we don’t have a lot of time to waste,” he said.

The show, which had been in the works for about a decade, gave airtime to the romantic lives of a demographic that has largely gone ignored by reality TV. As Mr. Turner and Ms. Nist snuggled on a Ferris wheel and rode through a river on horseback — scenes typical of the “Bachelor” franchise — they also met each other’s grandchildren and discussed the challenges of dating after the death of a spouse. Mr. Turner’s wife, Toni, died in 2017, and Ms. Nist’s husband, Billy, died in 2014.

The 22 women Mr. Turner dated on the show ranged in age from 60 to 75 and included widows, divorcées, grandmothers and one pickleball team captain. Before proposing to Ms. Nist, Mr. Turner broke up with Leslie Fhima, 64, a fitness instructor from Minneapolis. “You’re both wonderful, but only one of you is right,” Mr. Turner told Ms. Fhima, who had been considered one of the season’s front-runners.

Ms. Fhima said she was “blindsided” by Mr. Turner’s decision. “You made it sound like you chose me,” she said through tears, later in the conversation. “You led me down a path, and then you took a turn and left me there.”

The spinoff has renewed interest in a flagging franchise. The eight episodes before the finale drew an average of 5.7 million viewers per episode, according to Nielsen — a stronger showing than on any full season of the franchise since 2021. ABC has not announced whether “The Golden Bachelor” will return for a second season.

The series drew early praise for its hopeful portrayal of people in their 60s and 70s. But as the season continued, Mr. Turner received a fair amount of criticism, including for what some fans saw as his carelessness with contestants’ affections. (He told three women on the show, including Ms. Nist and Ms. Fhima, that he was in love with them.)

And in an article published this week by The Hollywood Reporter, a woman claiming to be Mr. Turner’s ex-girlfriend alleged that he had misrepresented his romantic history on the show.

In a phone interview on Friday, which has been lightly edited and condensed, Mr. Turner and Ms. Nist discussed the Hollywood Reporter article and reflected on the highs and lows of being the first couple to emerge from “The Golden Bachelor.”

Theresa, what made you want to apply for “The Golden Bachelor”?

THERESA NIST My husband passed away nine years ago. I did date, but I wound up just going out on one date every time. My daughter just sent me this application. I said, If they’re going to scour the entire United States for the best person, I’ll let them do it. So I applied and I had an open mind, but never expected to get to this part.

Gerry, is there anything you would have done differently, watching the season back?

GERRY TURNER I really have no regrets. I know there were difficult moments when I expressed affection for Faith and for Leslie. But I was committed to giving myself 100 percent to every woman in every conversation. I can’t say that I would change that, because the whole purpose of the show was to find my person, and I did that.

Theresa, what was your relationship with Leslie like during the show?

NIST I was best friends with Leslie. I cooked her dinners, she taught me exercise routines. There was one time when we were going to the Santa Monica Pier and we were dancing and singing. We actually held hands and looked at each other and were crying a little about separate things. I would say my two best friends in the house were Leslie and Faith.

Have you and Leslie kept in touch?

NIST By text I have kept in touch. And Faith, she and I have spoken on the phone many times.

What has it been like for you both to deal with criticism that took place on social media throughout the season?

NIST I want to answer that. It’s not fun to read people attacking you on things you know are not true, based on limited views that they see of you. People were saying that I was dumb or not independent. At first it was difficult, and then I started thinking that everyone has their own opinion based on what they’re seeing, and that’s their experience. I’m very confident in who I am.

Gerry, on that point, I know your romantic history has come up lately in a Hollywood Reporter article. In your view, how accurate was that piece?

TURNER I guess I haven’t really looked at it as how accurate it is. I’ve more looked at it in terms of timing, and how it really doesn’t fit with all of the positive things that are going on in my life right now. I mean, I’m sitting across from Theresa right now, and I look at her and she’s the love of my life. And I really don’t have time to think about some of the other stuff.

Have you read it?

TURNER I gave it a cursory look, so that’s about all I could say.

What have you learned about each other since filming wrapped?

TURNER A lot.

NIST A lot. I will say that he was pronouncing my name incorrectly.

TURNER She considers it her priority to sweep the kitchen floor every morning.

NIST And to clean up every single night. He would rather leave the dishes in the sink.

What statement were you hoping this show would make — and do you think that it succeeded?

TURNER We really wanted to show everyone that at our age, we are not invisible. That at any age, you can fall in love and find the right person. The show portrayed a lot of humor, too. And overall, that there’s hope and there’s heart with people of our age.

NIST And to keep your heart open, no matter how old you are. If you’re 90, if you have one day left to live, it’s worth it. Go out there and love.