TheMarried at First Sightexperts may have made the season 18 casting choices with ulterior motives.Married at First Sightseason 18premiered on June 21, 2025, and introduced viewers to five couples from the Chicago area. Emem and Ikechi, Allen and Madison, Karla and Juan, David and Michelle, and Camille and Thomas are the five couples being highlighted this season. TheMarried at First Sightexperts,Dr. Pepper Shcwartz, Pastor Cal Roberson, and Dr. Pia Holec, have been working as “expert” therapists and counselors together since season 15.
The experts are tasked with making the matches among those who applied, and guiding them through the eight-week-long experiment. However, the experts have done a bad job the last few years, and have a poorsuccess rate of 18.75%. The experts have a bad reputation of not matching people based off of their non-negotiables, leading to troubled waters early on for the couples. Moreover, they are often aloof or off-based with their advice and late in their approach to the couples' problems. In season 18, the experts already have abundant red flags with their casting choices.
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The MAFS Experts Should Not Have Chosen Some Season 18 Cast
Red Flags Were Ignored
Lifetime’sMarried at First Sightseason 18 had a “Matchmaking Special,” which let viewers in on the experts' deep dive into who they were going to choose and their justifications for pairing people together. There was also a “Kickoff Special” episode which saw host Kevin Frazier, a panel of reality TV experts, and formerMAFScast members dish on which couples are mismatched and who will have the biggest issues. With Allen and Madison, while both are solid individuals, the panel thought Allen was not edgy enough for Madison, and thather attraction for him would not be there.
David and Michelle were the other problem couple. The panel thought David living in his parents' basement was a red flag and a sign that he was not ready for marriage. Moreover, they thoughtKarla might be too whimsical for Juan, despite their love of dancing being at the core of their common interests. Many of the individuals matched look good on paper, but their relationship histories, differing personalities, and life goals likely won’t translate well in the matches they’ve been put in.
MAFS Season 18 Scandals Prove Experts Don’t Care About Cast
Were They Hoping For Discontent?
To add to the red flag nature ofMAFSseason 18 and its poor casting choices by the experts, there will be two major scandals. A situation surrounding cheating will occur. It’s not known yet who it involves, but judging by the trailer it seems to be on Ikechi’s front. What’s more, a couples swap will take place, indicating that the experts paired the wrong people together.The experts were reckless when choosing the cast and pairing people, as evidenced by the discontent that will happen this season.
The experts' lack of care when matching and their decision to pair people who aren’t as compatible as they should be, proves that the experts don’t care about the cast. It seems like with the casting mistakes, the experts are less concerned with their genuine matchmaking hopes and more concerned with slapping people together to make reality TV.
If the experts were to care, they would change up their process and do deeper dives on the participants because their terrible success rate speaks for itself and demonstrates their lack of ability.
The MAFS Experts Want To Manufacture Drama
They Didn’t Dive Deep Enough Into Compatibility
With theMarried at First Sightseason 8 casting choices,the experts seem more concerned with the potential to manufacture drama. In the early seasons of the show, there were more compatible couples and less focus was put on the negativity of the relationships and more emphasis was put on how to make the marriages last.
The experts on the show appear to be unprofessionally stirring the pot with the hopes of creating chaotic situations due to their mismatches.
What Direction Is MAFS Headed In?
Will The Experts Remain The Same?
TheMarried at First Sightfranchise is not in a good state of perceptionafter many seasons of failures with the casting, and the onus is on the experts.MAFSseems to be headed in a direction that cares more about facilitating drama than caring about the premise of the show. IfMarried at First Sightkeeps the same experts after this season, it would speak to the network’s desire to have a more chaotic show and its acceptance of a poor success rate coupled with high drama.
Married At First Sightairs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. EDT on Lifetime.
Married At First Sight
Cast
Based on the Danish version of the series, Married at First Sight is a reality show/social experiment that gives singles a chance to find a lifelong partnership with one particular caveat: they must agree to marry a stranger arranged the moment they meet. Experts provide counseling and guidance as they help couples navigate their new marriage with their unknown partner and highlight the journey of the newlyweds from wedding to honeymoon to beginning their new lives together. At the end of eight weeks, couples will decide to stay married or divorce.
