
Producers of Nine Networkβs long-running reality TV series, Married at First Sight (MAFS) dropped a gay Muslim groom from the upcoming seventh season just days before filming the weddings in September.
Melbourne-based actor Wil Karroum said he was rejected by email on September 4 after spending five months meeting casting agents and producers because the series relationship experts βcould not find a matchβ.
The 40-year-old said he was informed that βover 1,000 gay people had applied this yearβ and was shocked when the showβs experts said they could not find a single match for him. Karroum believes the axe came so producers could cast more influential contestants.
Speaking to the Star Observer, Karroum clarified that while heβs not upset about the rejection itself, heβs confused as to why a match couldnβt be found, especially after passing through multiple rounds of interviews β including one with MAFS executive producer Tara McWilliams.

βI know Iβm not the hottest guy around, but am I seriously that hard to match?β
Will Karroum
βThatβs a bit disingenuous and itβs a bit dodgy to me. Iβm an actor and actors want love as well,β he told the Star.
βIβm not picky and I find beauty in every race and creed, so I find it odd that they couldnβt find some sort of match. The whole thing is, I was OK with the rejection.β
During the interview stages, Karroum postponed moving to the Gold Coast and cancelled a trip to America, as producers asked him to βbe patientβ.
Karroum also told the Star that his position as an openly gay Muslim man, while initially appealing to producers, has cost Aussie television an opportunity for more well-rounded representation.
βI want to find love, but I also want to be an advocate for others in my position and show people that itβs OK. I wanted an equal representation and weβre not getting that,β he said.
βI do come from a religious background and Iβm not religious at all, but itβs hard for me to even gain acceptance through my family. I needed to actually find love and I havenβt had success through the usual avenues and I figured I should give it a shot.

βThey made it sound like it was something they were looking for,β he continued.
βThey said, βWe need to move on past this point in our historyβ and βOur culture needs to evolve,β and βItβs important that your voice is heard,β blah blah blah.
βThey lead me on. I asked them multiple times to tell me if itβs a βnoβ because I need to make decisions in my life.β
The news comes after Nine Network announced they had officially binned plans to bring back Talking Married, the sister show of Married At First Sight.
A source told that the decision to scrap the show was made βout of concerns for the mental health of those involvedβ.
Come to Bath, UK. You’ll be welcome hereβ€
Iβd date him. Heβs very handsome, and seems interesting.