There may be plenty of reality dating shows with wild premises out there, but MTV’s Are You the One? is in a class by itself.
At the beginning of each season, producers secretly pair contestants into couples based on the results from a matchmaking algorithm. The cast members then move in together and try to identify all of the perfect matches. If they succeed, they share a prize of $1 million, but each time they guess incorrectly, the prize money drops.
For the first seven seasons of the series, which debuted in January 2014, the potential matches were exclusively heterosexual. In season 8, however, the entire cast identified as sexually fluid, meaning that “perfect matches” were no longer limited to couples of the opposite sex. The change was lauded for improving inclusivity on the show — and the fact that it became exponentially harder was just an added bonus.
One of the show’s most successful love connections happened in season 1 between Amber Lee and Ethan Diamond. After they fell for each other during filming, Ethan proposed during the reunion special, which aired in March 2014. They tied the knot in September of that year and later welcomed daughters Scarlett and Serena.
Though Amber eventually found her husband on Are You the One?, she considered leaving the show at one point before filming was over. “At one point I pulled a producer aside and said I wanted to go home,” she wrote in a February 2021 essay for HuffPo. “I didn’t think I was cut out for reality TV and I felt completely over my head.”
After another producer encouraged her to stay, Amber had her first conversation with Ethan, and the rest is history. “We talked about everything from our family values to our hobbies, which were remarkably similar,” she recalled. “Honestly, we didn’t even have to say much ― the vibe and presence of Ethan was so warm and comforting that I immediately felt at home with him.”
While Amber and Ethan were a “perfect match,” some of the show’s other successful couples weren’t paired together by the matchmaking algorithm. Jenni Knapmiller and Curtis Hadzicki appeared on season 2 in 2014, but they were matched with John Moustis and Shelby Yardley, respectively.
After the cameras stopped rolling, however, Curtis and Jenni reconnected and started dating. The duo got engaged in October 2020. “I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to properly thank you for all that you do,” the California native wrote via Instagram at the time alongside a photo of himself sharing a kiss with his fiancée. “I love you forever.”
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Keep scrolling to see which couples from Are You the One? are still together:
