Aired in Brazil since October 2021, the Brazilian version of Love Is Blind has sparked controversy from the moment its first season premiered on Netflix. Among participants whose relationships ended in drama and accusations of staging, the series always generates stories that go beyond what is shown in its episodes.
While the love stories we see on screen are real – at least for the most part – some of the show’s conditions are not always met. Many couples who seem to fall in love “just for their personalities” may have actually seen each other before and have many mutual friends. Here’s the situation.
Love Is Blind May Not Be So Blind
Adapting an American format, Love Is Blind’s main premise is to bring together singles who have never seen each other before. All participants join various pods where they can only talk to several other people and are discouraged from sharing details involving physical appearance.
The idea of the show is that, solely through conversation and the exchange of experiences, one person can fall in love with another and propose. Only when this happens does a couple meet, spend a few days on a short honeymoon, and decide if they will get married after 30 days of living together.
In a 2023 report, UOL (Brazilian mainstream media) columnist Lucas Pasin stated that, like other reality shows, Endemol’s production for Netflix does not always tell the whole story. According to him, participants Maria and Valmir, who appear to be merely acquaintances in the third season, not only knew each other before but had also been romantically involved prior to the show.
However, the series presents them as if they had never had previous contact and had developed animosity while the episodes were being filmed. The columnist also claims that Maria did not have a “blind passion” for Menandro, whom she would eventually marry – she had already seen the shopkeeper on social media and knew very well what he looked like.
In response, Endemol denied the claim and asserted that they always follow very strict casting rules. However, this does not change the fact that several participants from different seasons knew each other beforehand and that the agency representing hosts Klebber Toledo and Camila Queiroz also represents several of the participants.
Questionable Stories, But Real Couples
Despite not everything in Love Is Blind being as the show portrays, the relationships displayed in its seasons have real characteristics. While most participants have separated over time, some remain together to this day:
- Nanda Terra and Mackdavid – Although Nanda married Thiago Rocha during the first season, they soon separated. Currently, Nanda is married to Mackdavid, another participant she met on the show, and the two already have a small child.
- Ágata Moura and Renan Justino – Participants of the third season, the couple remains together to this day. In September 2023, well away from Netflix cameras, they held a ceremony to renew their vows.
- Maria Carolina and Menandro – While the businesswoman may not have decided to be with Menandro completely blindly, the couple remains together and has a strong presence on social media.
The 4th season of the reality show released its second batch of episodes this week and is set to air its final episodes on July 3rd of 2024. Its main theme is “A fresh start” and features a cast made up solely of participants who have previously been married or had serious and lasting relationships in the past.
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