Love Is Blind season 7 is halfway through, and it’s become obvious that the producers have made some glaring mistakes, most notably casting shady cast members Stephen Richardson and Tyler Francis. 15 men and 15 women entered the Love Is Blind pods in season 7, and almost seven couples made it out of the pods and onto the vacation portion of the experiment. Stephen and Monica Davis, Tyler Francis and Ashley Adionser, Garrett Josemans and Taylor Krause, Marissa George and Ramses Prashad, and Tim Godbee and Alex Byrd left the pods engaged.
Leo Baudy and Brittany Wisniewski got engaged in the pods but didn’t last after the reveal. Brittany was visibly uncomfortable when she saw Leo, and Leo was overly affectionate and aggressive with his body language when they met. It was revealed that the producers did not invite them to the Mexico vacation but that they went to Miami, where they ended things shortly after. However, the Leo and Brittany drama pales in comparison to the scandals that came out regarding Stephen and Tyler in separate situations, and it’s had a ripple effect on the show.
Stephen & Tyler’s Detrimental Scandals Explained
Stephen & Tyler Weren’t Vetted Enough
The first scandal to break in Love Is Blind season 7 out of the pods (via @loveisblindnetflix) was between Stephen and Monica. Monica and Stephen got along upon seeing each other in person for the first time. While Monica said Stephen was not her type in the real world, she said she loved everything about him, was attracted to him, and that she thought he was the kindest person she’d ever met. The pair also began their sex life, which had no complaints from either party.
When they moved in together after returning from vacation, they had a conversation about their sex life which indicated Monica wasn’t ready to give herself completely to Stephen in every way in the bedroom, and Stephen felt comfortable with that. However, scandal broke when Monica revealed the next day that she had found “disgusting” sexual “fetish” text messages between Stephen and another woman on his phone. Stephen admitted to the transgression and made no excuses. He moved out and left Monica broken hearted.
In the same episode as the Stephen drama, Tyler was found to have been dishonest as well. A couch conversation between Ashley and Tyler was captured where they talked about Ashley finding out that Tyler already had three children. Tyler claimed that he was just a sperm donor for his two daughters and one son.
This admission crushed Ashley, who couldn’t believe Tyler had kept that from her after they spoke everyday about having children of their own. Moreover, it has been exposed that Tyler is not the “sperm donor” to the children, but that they are actually his children with his ex-girlfriend. Tyler scrubbed any trace of his kids off social media before coming onto Love Is Blind.
Important LIB Season 7 Drama Has Happened Off-Camera
Several Important Situations Have Not Been Caught On Camera
Love Is Blind production made huge mistakes letting shady characters like Stephen and Tyler onto the show without properly vetting whether they were truly ready for marriage. Production also missed capturing important scenes on camera. Both Ashley and Tyler’s “sperm donor” conversation and Monica finding the texts on Stephen’s phone happened off camera. What’s more, a significant and defining argument between Tim and Alex was not caught on camera.
In a reality show that follows the cast members’ every move, it was a huge blow to the season and franchise to not have caught these moments for viewers to see.
The LIB US Franchise Has Notoriously Bad Casting
There’s Been Clout Chasers & Shady People
The poor casting choices made by production in Love Is Blind season 7 follows a history of the American version of the show not vetting the cast members enough. Production dropping the ball in this way has led to clout chasers, dangerous people, and emotionally immature individuals being let on the show. In turn, the poor casting choices have caused scandals over the years, like Renee Poach suing production for setting her up in volatile situations with Carter Wall in season 5.
This latest set of scandals has turned fans off of the show because production has lost sight of what makes quality reality TV that is safe for the participants and fun to watch as a viewer. The inability of the production team of Love Is Blind U.S. to make quality casting choices and deliver matches that fans want to see has been overly apparent. Love Is Blind‘s production’s consistent shortcomings are ruining the show.
LIB Season 7 Has Ruined The Show’s Credibility
There’s Been Too Many Scandals
Not only are many Love Is Blind fans turned off to the show because of the bad casting and outrageous avoidable scandals but also because of the lack of situation capturing on camera. These elements of the show have ruined Love Is Blind U.S.’s credibility.
Stephen and Tyler’s controversies are just two more examples of the production’s history of letting fans down, and therefore, marring the show’s entertainment value.
LIB Fans Could Start Looking To Other Spinoffs
Love Is Blind UK Was Highly Praised
With Netflix‘s Love Is Blind season 7 failures, fans are likely looking to other franchise spinoffs which have less scandal and more value. Love Is Blind: UK was highly praised and well-received by viewers, who enjoyed a more authentic cast who had journeys that were more relatable and fun to watch. What’s more, Love Is Blind: Habibi season 1 just dropped, and the Brazil, Mexico, and Sweden seasons also had good reviews from fans.
Fans may choose to watch those Love is Blind versions in the future over the OG U.S. renditions. Love Is Blind is a powerhouse franchise, but it’s become clear that the U.S. version, with the latest scandals involving Stephen and Tyler, have made the version less attractive. In future seasons, production needs to dig deeper into their casting choices and catch more important moments on camera if they want to keep their fanbase.
