FBOY Island Australia host Abbie Chatfield has hit back at critics who have claimed the show “encourages bullying” of male contestants.
ICYMI: the cheeky dating show has returned for a second season on Binge, with Abbie guiding three new leading ladies as they attempt to decipher which of their suitors are “FBoys” and “Nice Guys”.
However, some viewers believe the show goes too far in how it allows Abbie and the ladies to poke fun at the contestants.
Per Yahoo Lifestyle, the main argument (from mainly male users, the outlet notes) is that if roles were reversed, there would be public outrage if a male host was ripping female contestants to shreds.
Speaking to the publication, Abbie denies that FBOY Island “bullies” contestants.
What did Abbie Chatfield say about ‘bullying’ on FBOY Island Australia?
Abbie asserted that critics must realise that she, Krystal Thomas, Nicole Mitrov and Ally Woodfall are “punching up” at men rather than punching down due to our patriarchal society.
“I think it’s very interesting that when individual men are called out on behaviour, it’s seen as bullying,” she told Yahoo Lifestyle.
“One of the examples in the show that people have said was bullying was my joke about Jake [O’Brien], who left voluntarily in the first episode, and I made a joke that I forgot his name.
“Some men online were a bit upset about that, but it’s like, his only line on the show was, ‘Where are the b*tches at?’. So it’s fine for you to say, ‘Where are the b*tches at?’, but it’s not okay for me to say I can’t remember his name?”
And fair point!
Abbie Chatfield calls out hypocrisy in FBOY Island criticism
Host Abbie, who rose to fame on The Bachelor 2019, added that the comments defending FBOY Island contestants come from “the same men who say ‘women can’t take jokes’ when they make violence against women jokes”.
“The show isn’t that serious, and the banter is a joke,” she continues. “There’s also an element in signing up for a show called FBOY Island. It’s like if I go on panel shows and they make fun of me, that’s not bullying. That’s just having a conversation and banter.
“I’m aware the show that I host is called FBOY Island. I’m aware that I make buttplugs and vibrators. I don’t get offended by those jokes, but men aren’t used to having that on a national scale like women do every day.”
The 28-year-old added: “I think that if you’re that upset about me making jokes, maybe don’t watch the show. And maybe you should stop making jokes at a woman’s expense.”
Why FBOY Island Australia is so successful
According to Abbie, FBOY Island‘s ability to not take itself too seriously is why it’s been so successful.
“I think people just want a bit of a laugh. Everything feels so heavy and serious, especially since Covid, and I feel like everyone is on social media in these scroll holes,” she confessed. “I think that FBoy Island is just an easy watch and it’s silly.
“And also the gamification of it and the questioning of who is who and the allowance to call men out is validation, particularly for people that date men watching this being like, ‘Oh my god, we’re allowed to speak about f*ck boys or the overuse of therapy talk’. Things that aren’t particularly egregious, but you and your friends speak about day to day.
“I think it’s taking the best parts of a community of social media and the nuances of that to create conversations, but also the extremity of reality TV.”
Abbie’s take on FBOY Island bullying claims come after 2023 contestant Vernon Lyon called out Abbie and Ally for making unfavourable comments about his…*ahem*…manhood.
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