I’m convinced that the Married at First Sight experts aren’t as accessible to the participants as they need to be, and a recent cast revelation proves this. Married at First Sight season 18 wrapped up officially in March 2025, and I’ve seen more interesting updates, scandals, and bad behavior surface post show. Season 18 was arguably the messiest season in the franchise’s history as an affair and couples swap took center stage. Moreover, one cast member, Emem Obot, was already engaged to another man within a week of asking for a divorce from her MAFS husband.
David Trimble and Madison Myers, who were married to Michelle Tomblin and Allen Slovick, respectively, were at the center of the cheating. The pair’s affair came to light, and they decided to pursue one another unabashedly. Since the show, I’ve seen David and Madison obnoxiously showcase their love and relationship. Most recently, they did an interview on YouTube in what I felt was an effort to retain their relevancy. However, annoying, I found one part of what David said I feel ring true about the Married at First Sight process regarding the effectiveness of the experts.
The MAFS Experts Have A Big Job
The Experts Are At The Center Of MAFS
Since MAFS season 15, Dr. Pepper Schwartz, Pastor Cal Roberson, and Dr. Pia Holec have been the expert panel of therapists meant to not only match the couples but also guide them through the experiment in an effort to help them stay together. However, their track record is poor, with only 13 of 69 couples matched all-time still together. This underscores the experts’ inability to match participants at a skillful level, and with so many couples calling it quits early into the experiment, I see that they’ve also dropped the ball with their guidance and therapy approaches.
I understand that it’s hard for the experts to have a pulse on all five couples and their issues at all times, but it’s become clear there is a disconnect that is affecting the success rate negatively.
The MAFS experts are at the center of the show, but I’ve noticed them becoming background characters due to their inability to save many of the marriages.
This notion is echoed by MAFS season 18’s David, as the accessibility of the experts to the cast in peril has come into question.
The MAFS Experts Aren’t Accessible Enough To The Cast
According To David Trimble & History’s Outcomes
David and Madison recently did an interview with Licensed Therapist, Denise Brady, who runs a YouTube channel, TheInnerchild.Whisperer (via u/SparklesandSpice on Reddit.) In the interview, David and Madison covered topics like their recruitment onto the show, how they felt when they first saw one another, and how long the reunion filming actually was. However, I thought the most poignant topic was regarding how the pair, specifically David, felt about the experts’ involvement in the eight-week-long process.
David relayed that he wished the experts were more available/accessible during the process. David’s take is compounded by the show’s historically poor outcomes. At pivotal moments, like when season 17’s Clare Kerr and Cameron Frazer had an early impasse over their lifestyles, the experts were absent from conflicts they could have helped resolve. To me, David’s sentiment and my own feelings about the experts’ aloofness, are a clear indicators that the experts aren’t doing enough.
Why Are The Experts Not Hands On?
Do They Have A Say In Their Involvement Level?
The experts may not be as hands-on as they need to be because they are not clued or roped in by production enough to be effective.
It seems to me that the experts rely on prompts and information from production to initiate a meeting or talks with the cast.
However, since it’s their job, I would think, in order to help their reputations, that they would be more present and in-tune with the couples.
In any case, the details concerning why the experts aren’t a bigger part of the Married at First Sight couples’ pitfalls are unclear, but I’m certain their absence from cast therapy needs is not positive for the show. I’d like to see the experts be more involved with the couples, since they rely so heavily on guidance and conflict resolution during the stressful and unique experiment. Going forward, there are signs that a new panel of experts is in the works, but there’s no official word on when that could take place.