Warning: This article contains spoilers for the current season of MAFS Australia.
Married at First Sight Australia season 11 participants Ellie Dix and Jonathan McCullough have reportedly been reprimanded by broadcaster Channel Nine over a being engaged in a cheating affair with each other.
Photos of the pair holding hands and kissing on a Gold Coast beach have been published by Australian tabloids, despite their being married to other people on the show.
McCullough was also spotted at Dix's Christmas work do in photos uploaded by several people to Instagram.
Yahoo Lifestyle reports Channel Nine executives are "furious" and producers are in "damage control", telling the duo off for being "so careless" and reminding them of their contractual obligations not to leak spoilers.
Dix and McCullough are both also said to have been pulled from doing publicity for the show's current run.
"These 2024 contestants have all completed filming for the eleventh series and while some may have walked away with a loving relationship, others have been left to lick their wounds. Either way, they have signed contracts forbidding them from ruining storylines," Yahoo Lifestyle reported the show's production company Endemol Shine as saying.
The Daily Mail claimed the affair began after Dix called it quits with husband Ben Walters and allegedly began secretly messaging McCullough who had split with Lauren Dunn. It is believed the cheating scandal will be aired during a Commitment Ceremony in an upcoming episode of the current season, leading to explosive confrontations and revelations.
"Lauren had no idea that Jono kept in contact with Ellie and found out during filming, and boy was she not happy," a source said.
"She was completely gobsmacked and felt humiliated by the end - but everyone else is happy for them."
In the 2023 season of MAFS Australia, producers served legal papers against groom Dan Hunjas after he spoiled his storyline on the reality show by going public with a new girlfriend.
Hunjas married Sandy Jawanda on the show, but revealed their coupling did not last.
To make matters worse at the time, Hunjas confirmed on social media he was already dating another woman, who was seen during his on-screen nuptials.
A source told the Daily Mail Hunjas' actions were seen "as a threat to the ratings of the show" and he was served with legal papers ordering him to "stay away" from his new love, nurse and influencer Samantha Symes.
The couple subsequently split up.
Full episodes of the current season of MAFS AU are streaming on ThreeNow and airing on Three at 7pm Sunday-Wednesday.
