Married At First Sight: Cast Members Who Likely Regret Doing The Show

While Lifetime’s Married at First Sight boasts a higher success rate than some of its contemporaries, including The Bachelor, The Bachelorette, and Are You The One, not every cast member has found their happily ever after on the show. Although the thirteen seasons of this marriage experiment have produced 29 marriages that have continued on past Decision Day, some former contestants probably wish that they had stuck to more traditional ways of meeting love interests.

What makes MAFS different from other dating shows is that the couples are matched ahead of time by a panel of relationship experts. Before the show is filmed, these panelists spend weeks interviewing each candidate, performing psychological evaluations, and even conducting home visits. They learn all they can about the individuals before matching them up as couples. Despite rumors to the contrary, these experts do have the final say in terms of who ends up together in the premiere. Many believe it is this extensive preparation and pre-pairing evaluation that makes the success rate of MAFS what it is. However, even the experts get it wrong sometimes.

While the love experiment has garnered successful results for a surprising number of participants over the past thirteen seasons, some have found the pressure and drama of marrying complete strangers too much to handle. Everyone goes in hoping for a happily ever after, and some manage to find what they’re looking for. However, others end up living with heartbreak or other forms of regret.

Molly Duff

Molly Duff and Jon Francetic’s pairing in season 6 initially appeared to be one of the show’s most perfect matches to date.  Unfortunately, the honeymoon ended quickly for this former fan-favorite couple. After only a few days of marriage, they began having explosive arguments. Audiences caught a glimpse of Molly’s less-than-perfect side when Jon secretly recorded one of their fights. The one-sided video depicted Molly as verbally abusive to her MAFS husband Jonathan and painted her a villainess for the rest of the season. The hate and backlash she received were probably enough to make her regret her time on MAFS. Molly even claims she was the recipient of death threats after the season aired, but the trouble didn’t stop there.

In August 2018, just 8 months after Decision Day (during which Jon and Molly mutually decided not to move forward in their marriage), Jon announced that he was dating former MAFS relationship expert, Dr. Jessica Griffin. The pair got engaged 8 months later and are currently planning their dream wedding. While Jon’s stint on the show seems to have led him to love and happiness, Molly probably would have been better off staying away.

Tristan Thompson

Tristan Thompson’s marriage in season 7 was filled with drama, right from the very start. The couple couldn’t even begin their honeymoon right away, thanks to wife Mia Bally’s detainment by police. She’s been denied the right to board their flight to Cancun due to an outstanding arrest. From there, troubles mounted, as the pair fought over everything, from finances to cheating allegations.  Tristan believed his wife was still on dating apps, while Mia accused him of still being attracted to his ex.

Despite their tumultuous journey during the season’s run, the duo shocked viewers by deciding to stay together in the finale. Unfortunately, the two called it quits in after only a few months. Tristan has managed to find love after MAFS, and in 2020, he married Rachel White, with whom he welcomed a son, Phoenix, in March of this year. Tristan did find love but likely would have without doing the show, and skipping Married at First Sight would have meant avoiding a whole lot of drama.

Mindy Shiben

Season 10 had several unforgettable moments, and one standout scene featured Mindy Shiben discovering her husband Zach Justice had been texting with her friend Lindsay, whom he’d met at their wedding! Interestingly enough, Zach’s relationship with Lindsay came to light after an argument in which he accused Mindy of lying. Zach claimed his bride had been keeping a conversation with her ex a secret, during which the former partner asked to pick her up from the airport when she returned from her honeymoon with Zach. Realizing Zach could only have gotten such information from Lindsay, Mindy confronted her husband about his relationship with her friend. Initially, Zach denied it, but he eventually admitted that he’d been confiding in Lindsay about his marriage via text and Instagram.

Mindy ended her relationship with Zach on the March 25 episode, and both sides agreed to not recommit to their marriage on the season finale Decision Day. After the season was over, Zach was spotting having drinks with fellow cast member Kate Conrad, another friend of Mindy’s. Mindy has never said that she regrets her time on MAFS. She even told People, “I wish Zach nothing but the best and I’m looking forward to the next chapter in my life.” However, if she had the chance to do it again, she’d probably think twice about her wedding guest list.

Jessica Castro

Jessica Castro is probably remembered for having one of the worst experiences in MAFS history. Fans felt something was off about Jessica’s marriage to Ryan DeNino from the beginning. Still, the couple mutually agreed to stay married on season 2’s Decision Day, believing they could work past the issues they had. Sadly, this was not the case. While filming their reunion show, Jessica divulged that their marriage was on the rocks after discovering infidelity on Ryan’s part. Unaware that his mic was still live, Ryan was heard muttering “She’s f–king dead. When I get back to Brooklyn, she’s f–king dead, this girl.” Concerned for her safety, producers of the show provided Jessica with a security team for the remainder of her time filming.

It was later uncovered that this was not the first time Ryan had made such vicious threats against his wife. Jessica filed court documents in June 2015. According to Us Magazine, the allegations against Ryan claimed he had threatened, “I will break you into f***ing pieces….I will make your whole family disappear — and your f***ing dog-ass sister’s boyfriend.” Jessica has since found new love with her boyfriend, Sergio. The pair met in 2018 and welcomed their son, Sergio Jr., in February of this year. While her story does have a happy ending, it is safe to assume Jessica probably regrets ever signing up for Married at First Sight. 

Sources: People, Us Magazine

About The Author