When Channel 7 first revealed its plans for Stranded On Honeymoon Island, it was pitched as the calm to our post-FWAW storm; a Survivor-style matchmaking show that promised a new take on the traditional dating format. But since its inception, it’s been plagued by controversy, delays and spoilers, leading many to question if the reality juice has been worth the squeeze.
The show might have just kicked off with it’s six couples having just landed a week ago (by island time), but three episodes in and the network has already bumped it out of its prime time spot.
So what exactly is going on with the show meant to meet our MAFS-made expectations and then some? From spoilers to behind-the-scenes blind items, here’s everything we know about how Stranded On Honeymoon Island sailed so far off course.
Unintentional Honeymoon Island Spoilers Shared
We know enough about reality television to understand that taking part in any show brings with it some pretty hectic non-disclosure agreements. Created under the guise of allowing viewers to live in the faux fantasy of the season’s events, it usually involves a full social media ban for anyone with a personal account.
But what happens when a dating show is filmed over two years before it even airs? Well, shockingly, life happens. Case in point, the Stranded On Honeymoon Island cast member, Tom, who was matched with Emily.
If you’re up to speed on the episodes so far, it might not surprise you to hear that the couple don’t leave the island in love.
In fact, anyone who watched the most recent episode would be well aware of their ill-fated fling, with Tom letting Emily know that he was actually seeing someone outside the show; or was he?
“I lied to her, I said I had feelings for someone else, but that’s just not true,” he revealed. “Sometimes I just blurt out white lies when I feel pressured or scared.”
Regardless of the initial fallout from Tom’s emotional blunder, it was nothing compared to what viewers subsequently discovered about his actual relationship status IRL.
All it took was a quick scroll through is Instagram profile to realise that – not only is Tom married – but as of May this year, he’s also a newly-minted twin dad.
While Tom may not have found love on the shores of Honeymoon Island, he did find it with Olympian, and fellow reality television contestant, Morgan Mitchell – who, funnily enough, placed sixth on this year’s Survivor Australia: Brains V Brawn.
Sure, it may prove to be a disappointing spoiler for anyone invested in the series, but at least the showrunners weren’t lying when they led with a MAFS-meets-Survivor hook.
Buried Treasure Or Trouble In Paradise?
When the network first announced its plans to release the show way back in May 2024 with the promise of an “end of year” air time, it did so with a bang.
A trailer featuring all six couples, newly matched and subsequently marooned, flooded Channel 7’s airwaves in between final episodes of Farmer Wants A Wife, everything appeared to be on track. But as time went by with no sign of a debut, audiences eventually moved onto the next smooth brain dopamine hit.
It turns out, the show had momentarily found itself up the creek without a paddle, or rather, on the cutting room floor. Speaking to Pedestrian.TV in 2024, a sourced claimed that Stranded On Honeymoon Island was done and dusted. “Insert the sound of a coconut falling from a tree and landing on a person’s head, that is how good the finished version of the show was.”
“No wonder the network buried it,” the insider added. But the Stranded On Honeymoon Island spoilers didn’t end there.
“The couples were badly matched and ended up all leaving the island single, something that was hard to hide considering they all left the show and told everyone they knew the show was horseshit and that nothing interesting happened,” another source claimed.
“I guess you could hardly pretend you are still married for 14 months just for the magic of TV…”
So as the ratings reportedly continue to drop following a promising first week, it’s yet to be seen if the show will sink, or swim. Either way we’ll be keeping our eyes on any updates to come.
Related articles:
- Meet The Cast(aways) Stranded On Honeymoon Island
- ‘Stranded On Honeymoon Island’: What To Know About The New Reality Series
