Channel 9 is standing by its claim that Married At First Sight (MAFS) is still a social experiment and not a TV show where people are pushed to the brink, all in the name of ratings. The controversial programme is in its 13th season, and Aussie viewers have seen a lot in that time.

There has been an endless amount of yelling, tears, heartbreak, and overwhelming moments and the 2026 season is showing no signs of deviating from that format. After having the first Dinner Party of the year on Monday, the contestants are about to be put through a series of trials to test their relationships.

Geoff Dyer, director of programming at Channel 9 and 9Now, has defended the show and hit back against claims all the drama is carefully “manufactured” by producers.

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“It’s heavily produced, but we’re not trying to manufacture conflict and issues in the show,” he told TVTonight.

“The natural format beats of the show, putting two people together and marrying them at first sight, just naturally creates content and ups and downs.”

For some couples, there is an instant spark, and it’s clear that the experts managed to match them correctly.

For others, there’s tension, awkwardness, silence, or zero connection.

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That will undoubtably create good television, but the crux of the experiment is meant to be whether two people can fall in love after meeting at the altar.

There have already been claims of producer meddling in this latest season, with bride Mel forced to stand at the altar alone after her groom, Luke, forgot to bring the rings.

However, the experiment also sees couples get together at dinner parties, which typically results in drama when personalities clash — seemingly every night.

To add insult to injury, the contestants are also put through emotional trials like ranking bride and groom’s attractiveness in front of their new husband or wife.

MAFS viewers complain over ‘orchestrated chaos’

Some viewers have complained that the show needlessly pushes people to their limits during these trials and there isn’t enough space to let these relationships actually develop.

“The producers are brilliant at orchestrating chaos,” one said.

“The experts make me laugh as their success rate is so pitifully low and of course Australia’s biggest ‘experiment’ is comedy gold. It’s spectacular car crash TV.”

“Some of these experiment ‘marriages’ might have a chance if not for all the couples being forced into a group setting with unlimited alcohol,” added another.

Others complained that while the show might have started out with good intentions, many contestants these are just keen for their 15 minutes.

“Where people go wrong with MAFS is they think ‘the experiment’ is measuring whether two strangers can form a relationship. It isn’t doing anything of the sort. What ‘the experiment’ is really measuring, in painstaking detail, is the extent to which people will humiliate their dignity in the pursuit of fame,” said one.

“What a stupid experiment. Who in their right mind what would to participate apart from they clearly want fame and money,” added another.

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MAFS ‘holds up a mirror’ to the Aussie dating scene

But Dyer said Married At First Sight is designed to represent and reflect the complicated nature of today’s dating scene.

While it might not be as explosive in real life as it is on the TV, he believes it’s still accurate to some degree.

“The experiment is putting two people together for the first time, having our experts look at them at where they’ve gone right and wrong in their dating history in the past,” he said.

“Seeing if experts can match people and transcend what they want, and see if they can match someone with who they think would be a good match with them.”

“If you hold up a mirror to Australian relationships and Australian dating, that’s what you’re going to get.”

Yahoo Lifestyle has reached out to Channel 9 for comment.

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