Married At First Sight’s Stephen Stewart has broken his silence after his ill-fated ‘marriage’ with Michael Felix came to an end during Sunday’s episode.
From accusations of flirtation to a deep-seated lack of connection, their union seemed doomed from the start.
The Perth-based hairdresser, 26, offered an unfiltered perspective on the events that led to their breakup and the challenges they faced as a same-sex couple.
Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, Stephen recognised the absence of a genuine spark that could sustain their relationship.
The absence of chemistry between Stephen and Michael became glaringly apparent as they struggled to find common ground.
Married At First Sight’s Stephen Stewart, 26, (pictured) has broken his silence after his ill-fated ‘marriage’ with Michael Felix came to an end during Sunday’s episode
The Perth-based hairdresser, 26, offered an unfiltered perspective on the events that led to their breakup and the challenges they faced as a same-sex couple going on the dating show during an interview with Daily Mail Australia
‘We didn’t have anything to bond over… Every interaction, it just didn’t flow and it was hard work,’ Stephen shared.
Stephen admitted to feeling pressure once he found out he was a last-minute replacement after Michael’s original match, Simon Flocco, quit the show.
‘Once I found out that I wasn’t Michael’s original match I was put in to fill the void, that’s when I started to withdraw,’ he revealed.
‘We didn’t have anything to bond over… Every interaction, it just didn’t flow and it was hard work,’ Stephen shared
‘I was like, “Oh God, I can see that there’s no chemistry here”. Anyone who knows me and anyone who met us could see that there was it wasn’t a great match in communication styles and just common interests.’
‘It did make me think they just put us here because they needed that gay couple, which sucked,’ he said.
The pressure to conform to a predetermined narrative took its toll, adding an additional layer of complexity to their already fraught relationship.
The pressure to conform to a predetermined narrative took its toll, adding an additional layer of complexity to their already fraught relationship
‘As things progressed and once I realised there isn’t anything here and it won’t grow, then I absolutely felt the pressure from the producers to stay,’ he explained.
‘You can’t just leave. It’s got to make sense for the viewers. There’s a storyline that we need to follow, so after that I did absolutely feel like they were putting a lot of pressure on because they were disappointed.’
‘And fair enough, they were disappointed that me and Michael didn’t work out, but I don’t think they were disappointed because they thought we were a really good match.
‘I think they were disappointed because they really for Michael wanted it to work out. So yeah, that, that definitely added to the pressure of things for me, for sure.’
‘As things progressed and once I realised there isn’t anything here and it won’t grow, then I absolutely felt the pressure from the producers to stay,’ he explained.
Stephen recalled the pivotal moment when he realised the relationship was beyond salvage, after a flirty encounter with his hairdresser.
‘I brought it to Michael’s attention that I felt more of a connection with the hairdresser in that 30 seconds of talking, while getting my hair done, then I have the whole experiment with him,’ he confessed.
‘And for me, it was once I realised that, and I knew what our relationship is missing, I felt like I can’t stay here and give this my all anymore, because I would be lying.’
‘I told him that, and I told the producers, I was like, “I’m done, there’s nothing here, it’s not gonna, we’ve been given heaps of exercises by the experts to try out”.
Stephen recalled the pivotal moment when he realised the relationship was beyond salvage, after a flirty encounter with his hairdresser.
After the flirting scandal, the couple were unable to reach a resolution, leaving the future of their relationship in doubt
Stephen and Michael ‘no longer friends’
While Stephen and Michael initially maintained a friendship post-breakup, recent developments have strained their relationship.
‘It’s really recent that we stopped talking,’ Stephen revealed, expressing disappointment over the dissolution of their once-close bond.
Despite their shared experiences, Stephen laments the impact of external pressures on their friendship.
While Stephen and Michael initially maintained a friendship post-breakup, recent developments have strained their relationship
‘I think that obviously reliving a lot of this. I thought we had a really good relationship where we would check on each other just as the months went but that’s dissipated as the storylines gone on, which is, yeah, really disappointing,’ he revealed
‘I think that obviously reliving a lot of this. I thought we had a really good relationship where we would check on each other just as the months went but that’s dissipated as the storylines gone on, which is, yeah, really disappointing,’ he revealed.
‘I think I know what happened, he knows what happened, the other contributors on the show know what happened,’ continued Stephen.
‘But for him to be going with the narrative of the storyline that the show’s projected, and letting that affect our friendship that’s really hurtful because like I said, we both lived it. We both know what really was going on.’
