{"id":673677,"date":"2026-05-16T00:37:17","date_gmt":"2026-05-16T00:37:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/673677\/"},"modified":"2026-05-16T00:37:17","modified_gmt":"2026-05-16T00:37:17","slug":"more-married-at-first-sight-channel-nines-cunning-ploy-to-attract-new-viewers-to-the-block-revealed-as-producers-make-major-change-to-2026-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/673677\/","title":{"rendered":"‘More Married At First Sight’: Channel Nine’s cunning ploy to attract new viewers to The Block revealed as producers make major change to 2026 season"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Block is reportedly undergoing one of the biggest behind-the-scenes changes in the show\u2019s history, leading the crew to label the upcoming season \u201cmore MAFS than renovating”.<\/p>\n

The show’s 2026 instalment will see a major shake-up to the contestants’ living situations, with the faces of the show no longer residing on-site during production.<\/p>\n

Industry insiders claim the shift has significantly changed the atmosphere of the long-running renovation series as filming continues on the upcoming season in\u00a0Melbourne\u2019s Mornington Peninsula.<\/p>\n

\"Princess<\/p>\n

Sources familiar with production allege contestants are now being housed together in off-site accommodation rather than living in active construction zones throughout filming, similar to the housing of Nine’s Married At First Sight participants.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The arrangement is understood to have been introduced partly in response to the demanding production schedule and increasing focus on contestant wellbeing and, according to insiders, the change has noticeably altered the energy of the series.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe contestants are far more rested this year,\u201d one production source told SkyNews.com.au, adding: \u201cThey\u2019re arriving to filming much more polished and camera-ready compared to previous seasons.\u201d<\/p>\n

For years,\u00a0The Block\u00a0became known for showing exhausted contestants living among building materials, unfinished rooms and late-night renovation chaos.<\/p>\n

\"\u2018Growing<\/p>\n

However, sources claim contestants are now spending time focusing on fitness, grooming and socialising away from the construction site once filming concludes for the day.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re no longer going back to dusty building sites every night,\u201d an insider claimed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a very different atmosphere compared to the older seasons.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite the lifestyle changes, industry figures have assured fans that the level of conflict between the contestants has not diminished.<\/p>\n

In fact, sources allege producers are continuing to lean heavily into interpersonal dynamics, alliances and cast tensions throughout the season.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s still a huge amount of drama,\u201d one source claimed, adding: \u201cThe arguments and personality clashes are absolutely still there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some production insiders believe the evolving storytelling style is beginning to place greater emphasis on cast relationships and personalities alongside the renovation component of the competition.<\/p>\n

Industry sources claim this reflects a broader shift occurring across reality television as networks increasingly prioritise social media engagement and personality-driven casting.<\/p>\n

\"\u2018He<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s still renovating at the centre of the show,\u201d one insider alleged.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut there\u2019s definitely a larger focus now on the contestants themselves and how they interact with each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

Internally, some of the crew are joking that it feels \u201cmore MAFS than renovating,” with one well-placed source adding: \u201cCould I see some of these women on MAFS? Yeah, probably.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, it is “the intensity of the conflict and emotional resolution playing out off-site” that really pays homage to the Nine dating show, according to the insider.<\/p>\n

\"Personal<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s obviously no dinner parties in Mt Eliza but production are filming at the contestants\u2019 after hours,” one person behind the scenes noted, adding that there have reportedly been blow-ups, tears and relationship tensions, themes that have become synonymous with the MAFS format.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Several participants are already believed to be emerging as major personalities internally, with sources claiming producers expect strong audience reactions to multiple cast members throughout the season.<\/p>\n

The Block’s 22nd season is expected to air later this year in September.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Block is reportedly undergoing one of the biggest behind-the-scenes changes in the show\u2019s history, leading the crew…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":673678,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[64,63,25055,36783,134,1481,11252,15215,427],"class_list":["post-673677","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tv","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-build","tag-channel-nine","tag-entertainment","tag-house","tag-reality-tv","tag-the-block","tag-tv"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/673677","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=673677"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/673677\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/673678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=673677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=673677"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=673677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}