It’s no secret that Married At First Sight has been home to some of the worst behaviour in its 10-year history, with rumours that the upcoming season will see some of the most outrageous behaviour yet.
But now MAFS bosses have insisted that there is no such thing as a villain in TV, despite the show featuring some of the most iconic characters of all time.
Tara McWilliams, who is credited with transforming the experiment into the ratings juggernaut it is today, insisted that there was no such thing as a ‘villain edit’ and that any negative storyline is just the result of ‘bad choices’.
The executive producer of Married At First Sight, Tara McWilliams (pictured), says there is no such thing as a ‘villain edit’ and insisted that their storyline was a result of ‘bad choices’
‘I don’t think anyone is a villain. They’re not characters out of a storybook, they’re real people that sometimes behave poorly,’ McWilliams told Daily Mail Australia.
‘It doesn’t make them bad people. I think you can put the best meeting on a show like this, and the intensity of the experience makes people behave in a way that even surprises them.’
‘I think season 10 will see some controversial people – absolutely.’
McWilliams maintains that while these people may make bad choices, they are ultimately good people and that it’s important to remember that.
‘I don’t think anyone is a villain. They’re not characters out of a storybook, they’re real people that sometimes behave poorly,’ McWilliams told Daily Mail Australia. (Pictured: Olivia Frazer)
Tara explained that in many cases, these people are dealing with issues which are the root cause of their bad behaviour.
It’s often insecurity, anxiety, or even a lack of self-confidence, and this is something that is taken into consideration when casting for the show.
‘It’s all about the relationships we’re having, because that’s what you want out of the show,’ added expert John Aiken.
‘[We want] people discussing their relationships or their past patterns or how they want to do things differently.’
McWilliams maintains that while these people may make bad choices, they are ultimately good people, and that it’s important to remember that. (Pictured: 2023 bride Bronte Schofield)
Aiken admitted he had no problem calling out bad behaviour, adding that this season will feature some of the worst behaviour we have ever seen on the series.
‘I’m not there to take sides. I’m not there to be friends. I just literally have a role to play, which is to hold the mirror up to patterns because a lot of the people on the new series don’t have any insight into why they’re single, or what they’re like in a relationship,’ he explained.
‘My role is very much to highlight that to them. Now, some of them will push back, they don’t want to hear it,’ he continued.
Tara explained that in many cases, these people are dealing with issues which are the root cause of their bad behaviour. (Pictured: 2023 groom Shannon Adams)
‘Others say, ”thank you very much, I’m gonna do it differently”, I love that role but I do it in a way which is not. Which is objective, I would say. Yeah, that’s my role.’
The new season of MAFS will see the experts bring up a range of topics that include racism, gaslighting, and narcissistic behaviour.
According to onset sources, one groom has already been labelled ‘worse than Bryce’, while another bride and groom accuse each other of ‘gaslighting each other’ and playing mind games.
Expert John Aiken admitted he had no problem calling out bad behaviour, adding that this season will feature some of the worst behaviour we have ever seen on the series
‘Gaslighting gets tackled again, but other things about the way people treat each other in relationships, which for us – we think we’ve seen it all – is shocking…’ McWilliams told Variety last week.
‘If we’re being shocked still, then you know the content’s pretty ballsy,’ she continued.
‘We have scandals again, but scandals that you haven’t seen. And that’s what I love about this, the reality Gods have really kind of smiled down on us,’ she added.
Married At First Sight returns to Channel Nine on Monday, January 30 at 7.30pm
‘I’m not there to take sides. I’m not there to be friends. I just literally have a role to play, which is to hold the mirror up to patterns because a lot of the people on the new series don’t have any insight into why they’re single,’ he added. (Pictured: Harrison Boon)