One groom’s nice guy persona turned “nasty” on Married At First Sight Australia this week after a series of “unhinged” comments about the physical appearance of other brides in the experiments.
Jake, the perceived lovable larrikin teacher, shocked his partner Ash and viewers around the globe when he bluntly explained why he wouldn’t date each bride during a heated confessions week photo ranking task.
Just to recap, confessions week (split into two episodes) is where the experts set tasks for the couples that encourage them to be “open and honest” about themselves.
There’s a photo ranking challenge where couples rank other participants' attractiveness, an audition video viewing, and the hotly debated Ex-Files task where the couples question each other about their past partners.
About 99% of the couples so far have had no issues with the photo ranking task, generally focusing on their partner’s respective good attributes while ranking them first and keeping comments about others to a minimum.
But Jake, known for his comedic and easy-going nature, shocked Ash when he described fellow contestant Jacqui as having “crazy eyes” and Sierah as having a “face that screams I could stab you in your sleep a little bit”.
And it didn’t stop there, with the ghastly groom continuing to make his unfiltered judgments.
“I don’t wanna sound racist, but I normally date Caucasian people mainly,” he said of Awhina in a statement I imagine would’ve also emitted audible gasps from viewers.
“How dare you say these unhinged things about these gorgeous women,” Ash rightly says to the camera in private, clearly taken aback by the harshness of the comments.
To make matters worse, Jake ranked his own bride fourth in the middle of the pack when judging her attractiveness, leading to a tension-laden end to an already heated episode.
“At least you didn’t put me last,” Ash says with deflation in her voice.
“I’m a little bit shocked at the things you had to say. We can have fun and laugh and have banter, but bashing other people about their appearance is just ...”
Tensions are high ahead of the upcoming commitment ceremony. Photo / Warner Bros. Discovery
Jake, not realising he completely misread the room, continues to assert it was a joke, and he thought that he and his new wife had a relationship where they could talk like that.
“I’m not a naturally vicious person,” he says before storming off.
Things go downhill even further when Ash reveals she had “a few too many drinks” and went over to Sierah’s apartment that night to tell her about the comments.
Billy, her sweetheart husband, immediately condemns Jake’s behaviour and vows to support his bride, but people can likely expect fireworks at next week’s “commitment ceremony” (where couples decide whether to stay or leave the experiment).
“Listen here Jake, I hope you’re ready because you’ve got questions to answer.”
While Jamie and Dave are on Cloud 9 after having “consummated their marriage”, and Rhi and Jeff are slowly exiting their “friendzone”, Tony is becoming frustrated because he “can’t get a word in” with new wife Morena.
Jacqui and Ryan are also still on the rocks after last episode’s fallout, when the groom also ranked his wife lower in the photo task.
“It is crucial that my partner understands finance and investment. They must be an asset, not a liability,” she says in her letter-writing task, bringing up a recurring theme that her husband must follow her shared goals and ambitions.
Jacqui's "resume" didn't impress Ryan. Photo / Warner Bros. Discovery
For once, I agreed with the usually hot-headed Ryan that the letter did kind of “read like a resume”, but you can tell that Jacqui is trying in her own unique way.
The show’s initially lovable twin groom has become increasingly hostile towards his partner, who is clearly trying her hardest despite his disdain at her having a young son.
My annoyance turned to rage when Adrian refused to write his confession letter after Awhina honestly and openly revealed she cheated on an ex-partner when she was young.
Not understanding what “semantics” were, he told cameras about his past “not cheating” experience with his ex because he believed he wasn’t seeing her at the time.
“Me and my ex-partner had broken up, and I was talking to her a little bit but we were on and off. Then I ended up seeing someone else, and me and her got back together as boyfriend and girlfriend.”
His macho attitude and touted “old school values” are becoming increasingly suspect, so we’ll have to see if further truths are revealed at the commitment ceremony.
Mitchell Hageman joined the Herald’s entertainment and lifestyle team in 2024. He previously worked as a multimedia journalist for Hawke’s Bay Today.
