It’s been alleged that Married at First Sight Australia producers purposely mismatch some participants so they can “control” the storyline and how long they last on the show.
Of course, it’s no surprise that producers are highly skilled at manipulating storylines in the marriage experiment.
However, we’re a tad shocked that they “actively” push the participants and their relationships to breaking point.
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According to one MAFS insider, the show is orchestrated to have breakups occur evenly throughout the season,
“We know when all the couples will call it quits,” the source told Yahoo! Lifestyle. “Part of the success of this format is that you will get couples writing ‘leave’ at different times. The worst-case scenario is a mass walkout.
“Which is why this kind of manipulation from behind the scenes is warranted.” Is it, though?
The insider explained that producers are responsible for keeping things interesting, and that means consistent conflict to keep viewers engaged.
“The order of when people will leave the experiment is always locked and predetermined,” the source said.
“There have been very few couples that have proved us wrong over the years and there can be the odd subject-to-the-rule but we are almost always actively controlling the lifespan of each couple to keep viewers engaged.”
Insider reveals past ‘subject-to-the-rule’ Married at First Sight participants
According to the source, 2021 participants Bryce Ruthven and Melissa Rawson were expected to break up during their season.
However, they are now married for real and share twin sons.
“Everyone working on that show knew Bryce would stick around and that Melissa would stick around but it was expected Melissa would leave him at the final vows to give the viewers the perfect story arc,” the production insider revealed. “That’s truthfully how producers saw that love story ending.
“However, in most seasons, we get it right, and we just tick them off the list as expected.”
Meanwhile, 2024 stars Lucinda Light and Timothy Smith were “planned to fall apart” after Collins Christian and Natalie Parham left.
“But producers changed their minds when they realised Lucinda was TV gold and continued to coordinate that relationship behind the scenes to keep them in the experiment as long as possible,” the source dished.
“Everyone on set fell in love with Lucinda and that is why Channel Nine changed their minds on them leaving the experiment second.”
However, So Dramatic! recently revealed that following their “catastrophic” Homestays Week, Lucinda and Timothy opt to leave the experiment.
Turns out some relationships really do have a shelf life!
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