The ‘revenge hook-up’

MAFS may be over for the year, but there’s still time for one last bombshell.

Following his dramatic split from Alissa Fay at Final Vows – and her post-show recoupling with Australian Ninja Warrior star Nathan Ryles – David Momoh is stirring up drama among the cast by hooking up with his ‘back-up bride’.

For those who watched the season from start to finish, David and Alissa were portrayed as one of the experiment’s strongest couples, seemingly immune to the chaos that engulfed the rest.

But they fell apart at the last hurdle – partly due to reasons shown on screen, and also because of an unaired ‘sexual mishap’ the Daily Mail first reported on March 18.

Now that MAFS has finished airing and David and Alissa are ‘officially’ over, his rebound romance with Crystal Diaz, the woman he was paired with during the ‘Is the Grass Greener on the Other Side?’ challenge, has been raising eyebrows.

Following his dramatic split from Alissa Fay at Final Vows, MAFS groom David Momoh is stirring up drama among the cast by hooking up with ‘back-up bride’ Crystal Diaz (pictured together)

After filming wrapped, David and Crystal reconnected and have since been seen out together. (David and Alissa are seen during the Final Vows)

Alissa has already moved on with Australian Ninja Warrior star Nathan Ryles (pictured together at Daily Mail’s MAFS viewing party on Sunday night)

What started as a casual catch-up between the two is now being labelled by the wider MAFS cast as a full-blown ‘revenge hook-up’ after Alissa got ahead of David by debuting a new boyfriend shortly after their on-air split.

Viewers will remember that during the ‘Grass is Greener’ challenge, David barely engaged Crystal, keeping things strictly polite and professional – at least on camera.

But it was a different story behind the scenes.

Insiders say that after filming wrapped, David and Crystal reconnected and have since been seen out together, looking far closer than two people with ‘no chemistry’.

‘It wasn’t just friendly,’ a source revealed. ‘There was real energy between them.’

Of course, what’s really fuelling the drama is the timing of it all. ‘It looks like payback after Alissa’s new romance with Nathan,’ a cast source told me.

Whether it’s just revenge or the start of a real relationship remains to be seen.

Danny goes into hiding

Danny Hewitt (pictured) has all but disappeared, say former cast members

Danny, who was married to Bec Zacharia on the show, never shied away from controversy – so his decision to lie low has raised eyebrows. (Danny and Bec pictured on the couch)

While David’s move sends shockwaves through the cast, another groom has taken a different approach.

Danny Hewitt has all but disappeared.

In the days following the reunion fallout, multiple cast members have privately expressed concern, claiming they have been unable to get in touch with him.

‘No one can reach him,’ one insider told me. ‘He’s gone completely quiet.’

Danny’s volatile on-screen marriage to Bec Zacharia and ongoing feuds within the group dominated the season, so his sudden silence has raised alarm bells.

While Danny appears to be freezing out most of the cast, Scott McCristal revealed to me yesterday that he had been in direct contact with Danny.

‘I spoke to him 10 minutes ago,’ Scott said.

In fact, Scott made it clear their friendship remained intact despite the backlash that followed Danny after the reunion.

He said that while Danny’s behaviour was heavily criticised, viewers hadn’t been shown the whole story.

‘I think every time they showed those bits of Danny saying stuff, it’s because he was checked out,’ he explained.

According to Scott, audiences didn’t see a lot of what was going on behind the scenes in Danny’s marriage to Bec.

‘There was a lot happening in their relationship… yelling,’ he said. ‘He was dealing with a lot more than what people really saw.’

Scott McCristal (pictured) is the only MAFS participant who is able to reach Danny Hewitt, who is lying low and apparently freezing out the rest of the cast

Why this season never felt quite right

In past MAFS seasons, contestants might have plotted their OnlyFans launches or timed the reveal of new relationships after the cameras stopped rolling.

But this year, the behind-the-scenes manoeuvring began from day one.

Right from the start, it was clear – both from what I saw and what I heard – that managing public perception was the main priority. Genuine connections took a back seat to image control.

On set, it was obvious: the cast was constantly weighing how every moment would look on TV, how it might go viral on social media, and what audiences would think.

It was the major point of difference from previous seasons. In the past, brides and grooms focused on the experiment during filming and didn’t really dwell on audience perception until later. Not so in 2026.

As a result, in my view, we were left with a less authentic cast.

I’m not naive – I know the participants are acutely aware of the opportunities that could await them if they play their cards right on the show – but never has the quest for fame felt more calculated.

One insider summed it up: ‘Everyone wanted to be liked. Not by their partner, but by the audience.’

The real influence wasn’t the experts

Behind the scenes, another surprising pattern emerged.

Instead of looking to the relationship experts for advice, this year’s cast sought guidance from past participants and aligned themselves with familiar faces from previous seasons.

This year’s cast sought guidance from past participants and aligned themselves with familiar faces from previous seasons. (Joel and Juliette are seen at a MAFS Commitment Ceremony)

Gia, for example, spoke to Jessika Power and Ines Basic. Bec was in regular contact with Awhina Rutene and Jamie Marinos.

During filming, Danny had several conversations with Awhina’s on-screen husband Adrian Araouzou after running into him at the local gym.

Adrian reportedly told Danny he needed to stay until the end of the experiment ‘for exposure’ – otherwise there was no point in him being on the show.

It seems many of the participants were being influenced to the point that it shaped their behaviour throughout the entire season.

The same drama – on repeat

Did you feel a sense of déjà vu watching MAFS this year? Me too. The same feuds flared up week after week, writes the Mail’s Ali Daher. (Gia Fleur is pictured with Brook Crompton)

Did you feel a sense of déjà vu watching MAFS this year? Me too.

The same feuds flared up week after week and every dinner party devolved into near-identical arguments.

Mid-season, the ‘mean girl’ antics of Bec, Gia and their clique took centre stage, pushing the bride-and-groom relationships into the background.

Leaked texts dominated the narrative, hijacking episodes and exhausting viewers in the process.

At times, the show felt less like a relationship experiment and more like a group chat in freefall.

That’s what happens when producers take one idea and stretch it out far too long.

They won’t like me saying it – but it’s true.

The couples who should have left sooner

Then there were the couples who stayed far too long. Do I even need to name them? Of course, I’m talking about Gia and Scott, Bec and Danny.

Their relationships had run their course long before the end of the experiment, but they stuck around anyway, creating drama that was past its use-by date yet remained a focal point of the show.

While they may have dominated conversation, they also stagnated the experiment, pulling attention away from the couples that had genuine potential.

Again, the producers will be firing up my DMs – but it’s true.

Couples like Gia and Scott (pictured) delivered the drama that kept audiences hooked, even if it was predictable and many of them were just tuning in to hate-watch

The uncomfortable truth

Still, there’s a reason why the producers made the decisions they did: without the Becs and Dannys, the Gias and the Scotts, there would simply be no show.

Love them or hate them, these four stars carried the season. Most viewers would be hard-pressed to remember the other couples on the show at all in 12 months’ time.

They delivered the drama that kept audiences hooked, even if it was predictable and many of them were just tuning in to hate-watch.

But in the long term, this type of lazy storytelling erodes viewer trust.

Why Nine owes viewers an apology

If you ask me, Channel Nine owes viewers an apology.

Throughout this entire season, the cast members and other show insiders have all repeatedly told me the same thing: key context was missing from the final edit and critical moments were left out.

In fact, I’m told entire storylines were simplified or simply cut out altogether.

If you found yourself wondering, ‘This doesn’t make sense,’ you weren’t alone.

‘There’s so much that hasn’t made it to air,’ one insider told me. ‘If people saw the full picture, they’d understand things very differently.’

To be fair, we have always known MAFS uses a degree of artistic licence and contestants who get a bad rap will often blame the ‘edit’.

But when the gap between what is shown and what is real becomes too wide, trust starts to erode.

If viewers don’t tune in for the next season, Nine will only have themselves to blame.

The reality after reality TV

The post-broadcast fallout from this season was catastrophic, with several participants telling me they’re struggling mentally and financially, with little support from the network.

It’s understood the cast was sent a list of recommended talent agents – effectively leaving them to fend for themselves.

‘I went on this show and got literally nothing out of it,’ one cast member tells me.

‘My life was better before it. I’m jobless, struggling to find work… I can’t pay my rent.’

Despite expectations of walking away as influencers, many haven’t even secured social media verification. It’s a brutal reality check few of them saw coming.

Until next time.