How Many Married At First Sight Couples Are Actually Still Together?
Lifetime docuseries Married at First Sight is all about first impressions. Long before Netflix proved love is blind, strangers on the Married at First Sight series were already busy meeting their partners for the first time at the altar. Talk about a leap of faith. The long-running show, which originally aired on the FYI network, has matched more than 30 couples in cities nationwide — from Chicago, Illinois to Charlotte, North Carolina. Fans watched as these newlyweds hit conventional milestones, like going on a romantic honeymoon to moving in together, the not-so conventional meeting of the friends and family after the wedding, and, finally, the decision to either stay married or get a divorce after only weeks of knowing one another. Cue the dramatic music.
Not only does this premise make for good reality TV, it's also, surprisingly enough, led to some real-life success stories and many are still a part of the Married at First Sight family, serving as commentators on Lifetime's Couples Couch, where they discuss their thoughts about the latest season. Here are all eight of the Married at First Sight couples that are going strong.
Married at First Sight couple Jamie Otis and Doug Hehner continue expanding their family
Meeting a stranger at the altar would make any woman act like Julia Roberts in Runaway Bride — and Jamie Otis was no exception. Though she didn't make a run for it, she expressed a lot of uncertainty and shed some tears, even at the altar in front of her future husband, making season one of Married at First Sight a memorable one. At one point, cameras even captured a disheveled Otis breaking down on the floor as her bridesmaids tried to console her. No one, much less Otis, thought she'd still be married to that stranger, Doug Hehner, many years later.
In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Otis said she "genuinely thought I made the worst decision of my life" that day. But things quickly turned around for the couple, who fell in love on the TV show. "Not to pat myself on the back, but from day one when she was crying, three days later she was in my pants," Hehner joked. As of this writing, the couple remains happily married with a second home in Florida, a daughter, Henley Grace. In September 2019, they announced they had a second child on the way.
Married at First Sight's Ashley Petta and Anthony D'Amico are more in love than ever
Chicago-based couple Ashley Petta and Anthony D'Amico met on Season 5 of the popular reality TV show Married at First Sight. Since then, they've remained married and added a new member to their family with the birth of their daughter, Mila Rose, in 2019. When D'Amico found out he was going to be a father, he told People, "As the dad, my first thought was, 'Oh man, I'm in trouble!'" He added, "I know [my daughter] will have me wrapped around her little finger." The same is true for Petta, who's clearly enjoying the married mom life. Most every photo she posts on her Instagram page involves her cute daughter and hubby.
In celebration of the couple's third wedding anniversary in July 2019, Petta took to Instagram to share an especially sweet photo of the family of three. "Who would have thought, [three] years later, I would be sitting on the front step of my house with my amazing husband and beautiful baby girl!" Marrying a stranger certainly paid off for these two.
Married at First Sight couple Danielle Bergman and Bobby Dodd may not grow their family any larger
Married at First Sight alums Danielle Bergman and Bobby Dodd are stronger than ever after facing a dire situation together. The Dodds, who wed on Season 7 of the Lifetime series, announced they were expecting a baby girl in 2018, but trouble arose as Bergman got closer to her due date, People reported. Bergman was diagnosed at the hospital with HELLP syndrome, which is a "life-threatening pregnancy complication usually considered to be a variant of preeclampsia," according to the Preeclampsia Foundation.
As her symptoms worsened, her husband told People he hoped "that I would be taking my wife and daughter home at the end of all of this." Ultimately, he did. His wife recovered and gave birth to a healthy baby girl whom the couple named Olivia Nicole, according to E! News. The pair initially planned to try for another baby not long after their daughter was born, but, given their experience, Bergman told People they were reconsidering.
Still, these parents couldn't be happier with their daughter, who is quite the model on her mom's Instagram and celebrated her first birthday with an at-home party, as Bergman documented on social media, in February 2020. This family is too cute for words.
Married at First Sight's Shawniece Jackson and Jephte Pierre are proud parents
Shawniece Jackson and Jephte Pierre's TV relationship may have gotten off to a "rocky start," according to People, but they couldn't be happier these days. The couple, who wed as strangers on Season 6 of Married at First Sight, became the proud parents a four-legged pup named Keke while still on the show. Then, in 2018, they welcomed their daughter Laura Denise to the world.
Jackson admitted to People that she was shocked when she found out she was pregnant, but gladly took on the role. "I've always wanted to be a mom. I've always felt like that's my purpose in life — to recreate some little Shawnieces in life," she said. "I think it's the greatest gift a woman can have. Life is a beautiful thing!" Jackson revealed her pregnancy to the publication ahead of the season's "Decision Day" finale, which was when fans learned the couple decided to stay married.
Married at First Sight couple Kristine Killingsworth and Keith Dewar are homeowners
Although Kristine Killingsworth and Keith Dewar, from Season 8 of Married at First Sight, have not announced any baby news as of this writing, they did share a sonogram to Instagram in November 2019. However, the photo was not a pregnancy announcement, but rather a joke. You see, the pic was a silly sonogram of a turkey.
While it seems we'll have to wait a little longer for any news on that front, one thing is for sure, Killingsworth and Dewar are wasting no time settling down after buying a home in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
"While we got a taste of [sharing finances] during production, the real work really did begin once the cameras left. Neither of us wanted to continue renting, so we had to buckle down more than ever on our spending," Killingsworth told People. Though the topic of money sometimes caused conflict in their marriage, the couple worked through it and realized their dream of owning a home and renovating it from top to bottom, as seen by the many pictures and videos posted on Killingsworth's Instagram page. Hard work surely pays off.
Married at First Sight's Stephanie Sersen and AJ Vollmoeller travel the world together
It looks like Stephanie Sersen and AJ Vollmoeller, from Season 8 of Married at First Sight, have adjusted pretty well to life without the cameras. Sersen told People her "favorite" part of being married is "going to bed and waking up" next to her hubby every day. Judging solely by Sersen's Instagram page, travel definitely seems to be another highlight for these world travelers from Philadelphia, who've visited countless far-off destinations like Australia, where they celebrated their one-year wedding anniversary, to beautiful Montenegro. Maybe world travel is the key to a happy marriage? We can totally jump on that bandwagon.
This couple may have fallen in love quickly, but it doesn't mean everything has been rosy since the cameras turned off. Learning how to live together was the easy part, Vollmoeller told People, but communication proved tougher. "We've also learned how and when are the appropriate times and ways to deal with conflict. Meaning sometimes, in the exact moment, is not the right time for us to address an issue," he added.
Married at First Sight couple Deonna McNeill and Gregory Okotie mix business with pleasure
Deonna McNeill and Gregory Okotie chose to stay married on Season 9 of Married at First Sight — and that decision paid off in more ways than one. Together, they launched a faith-based clothing line called Akpesiri, which in Nigerian means "good life." It's also Okotie's middle name, according to the brand's website. The married duo even model their own clothes on the site and prominently feature their family and friends, including fellow Season 9 contestant Amber Bowles.
True to their business name, McNeill looks like she's living the good life with Okotie by her side. Her hubby is all over her Instagram page, which also features lots of fun selfies and family photos. McNeill is clearly very much in love with her man as evidenced by a photo she posted of Okotie wearing an Akpesiri shirt, with the caption: "Oooweee!!! Look at that handsome man!! Don't look too long tho, he's taken."
Married at First Sight's Elizabeth Bice and Jamie Thompson are enjoying life in California
Judging by their private getaway to Costa Rica, Elizabeth Bice and Jamie Thompson seem to be enjoying their honeymoon phase following their TV stint on Season 9 of Lifetime's Married at First Sight. This Charlotte, North Carolina couple has come a long way since their countless on-screen arguments, which threatened to jeopardize their marriage early on. But, in the end, their connection was undeniable. "You have to realize you are evolving yourself and once you start to let that guard down, you realize you're not changing yourself for a bad reason, you're changing because you're evolving with your relationship," Elizabeth Bice told E! News of finding common ground with hubby Thompson.
In a Q&A style YouTube video in March 2020, the couple revealed to fans they moved to California. "We love each other and we love new experiences and we love doing new things and we both knew we liked the west coast," Thompson explained. We wish them lots of luck!