Frenemies, battle lines and toxic exes: Inside the complicated web of relationships on MAFS 2026
Updated . First published
The MAFS participants have weaved a very tangled web this season, with lovers ending as exes and friends turning to foes turning to allies turning to sworn enemies once again.
Ahead of the Reunion we certainly have more than a few questions about where the very complicated relationships and friendships of Season 13 stand.
Want the official inside scoop on MAFS, unfiltered and unseen? Watch After The Dinner Party here.
Here's a deep dive into the very twisted relationship webs of the MAFS 2026 cast.
With a very helpful graphic! Nine
Steph and Danny – friends, but it's complicated
We didn't see this one coming!
At the Dinner Party Reunion, Bec revealed that she'd learned Steph and Danny had been in communication, explaining that their messages included Steph sending a bikini photo of herself during a Hamilton Island holiday and love heart emojis.
EXCLUSIVE: Bec reveals 'icky' airport discovery that exposes Danny scandal
Neither Steph nor Danny saw it as anything but a casual catch-up, but Bec felt it was "murky" – and certainly let that be known!
Awkies. Nine
The outburst led to Danny walking out of the Reunion Dinner Party, refusing to return for the final night of filming.
Speaking to nine.com.au, Steph explained how their conversation came to be after she spotted Danny watching her Instagram Story.
Danny never expected his messages with Steph to be the Reunion's biggest scandal. Nine
EXCLUSIVE: Steph reveals truth behind her relationship with Danny
She also revealed whether Bec's anger had made her second-guess anything.
"I'm not here to be getting caught up in Bec and Danny's drama. I couldn't care less," she said.
"At the end of the day, I've got an individual relationship with Danny. He's lovely to me. I'm lovely back."
Steph and Bec – friends?
This is what makes the Danny stuff so complicated.
Bec claimed that Steph was a good friend of hers – so much so that Steph was consoling her after Danny dumped her at Final Vows.
Safe to say, this has thrown a spanner into that friendship!
EXCLUSIVE: Bec reveals 'icky' airport discovery that exposed Steph and Danny's scandal
Bec and Gia – frenemies?
Where do we even start?!
These two decided they hated each other almost immediately after meeting at the Hens Do, and that single decision set the tone, especially among the brides, for the entire season.
Where it all began! Nine
From Gia claiming Bec's husband Danny told her she was more his type, to temporarily forming an alliance based on a mutual dislike of Alissa, to taking opposite sides during the Couples Retreat's X-rated, finger-related scandal, we could probably write a 50,000-word thesis on everything that happened.
EXCLUSIVE: MAFS' Bec details brutal phone call with Danny days after 'horrific' Final Vows split
In the last few weeks of the experiment, against all odds, Bec and Gia bonded as they found themselves both in love with men who weren't ready to say it back.
At the final Dinner Party, Bec even sneakily helped Gia come up with a plan to win Scott back (or at least look sympathetic to those of us watching her try).
All this to say ahead of the Reunion, they were firmly in "frenemy" territory ... but there's been yet another twist.
During Gia's long-awaited appearance on After The Dinner Party, she was shown footage of Bec admitting she was "framing" Gia, hoping to see her relationship explode.
"She f---ed me over, now you look like a d---. So see ya," Bec laughed in the clip from after the final Dinner Party.
READ MORE: 'Humiliating' footage exposes 'savage' plan to take down Gia
Who is aligned with who?
Further proof of just how impactful Bec and Gia's feud has been is clear in their own friendships, as a lot of the cast found themselves drawn into the divide.
Early in the season, Gia found herself a large friendship group with Brook, Mel and Rebecca – but their marriages soon all ended, leaving her searching for allies.
Luckily, Chris and Juliette then entered the experiment and she found herself with new friends.
Juliette and Gia were somewhat of a duo, that was until Gia found a better ally. Nine
EXCLUSIVE: Stella and Filip share all the details of their surprise engagement
As for Bec, she had the ability to somehow be friends with everyone (except Gia) and no one at the same time.
She joined in with Brook's attack of Alissa, rubbed everyone the wrong way with her behaviour at the third Dinner Party, broke Rachel's trust at the Retreat and then made amends with an apology tour.
Talk about a rollercoaster!
Despite all that, Bec's found herself good friendships in Sam and Joel and successfully repaired things with Rachel too.
Sam hasn't excused all of Bec's behaviour but has come to Bec's defence at times. Meanwhile Rachel and Alissa's friendship is solid. Instagram @bec_zac
Alissa and Rachel – besties
After all that, it's nice to have a more straightforward friendship!
Alissa and Rachel spent most of the experiment as besties and seem to be ending it the same way.
READ MORE: Everything we know about the explosive MAFS 2026 Reunion
Bec and Danny – exes and 'soulmates as friends'
One of the experiment's most up-and-down couples ended things with a very left-field suggestion from Danny.
At Final Vows, after Bec chose to continue their relationship on the outside, Danny broke her heart, saying: "Bec, I believe you're my soulmate as a friend, but I've come to realise there's doubt in my mind that you are my soulmate as a lover."
AS A FRIEND? Nine
Ouch.
Ahead of the Reunion, Danny was hoping that was something Bec could get behind ... but of course, it was not.
Instead, she confronted both him and Steph over their communication and the outburst led to Danny declaring he would not be returning for the Reunion Commitment Ceremony.
"I ain't turning up, mate, my lawyer can speak for me. No comment," he said.
Danny and Scott – friends-forced-to-be-foes
These former mates' friendship was collateral damage to their (now ex-) wives' drama, much to the experts' dismay!
Now that they're no longer with Bec or Gia, maybe they can patch things up.
There's been a lot of distance between Danny and Scott because of their (ex) wives. Could the bromance be back on? Stan
Rachel and Steven – broken up
Rachel and Steven chose to continue their relationship in a super sweet Final Vows, so we were excited to catch up with them at the Reunion.
Until moments into the episode, when Rachel revealed they'd since broken up.
:( Nine
Rachel had not felt like a priority as Steven left the experiment and jumped straight into getting his business back on track, and Steven said due he distance he could not give her the time she needed.
EXCLUSIVE: MAFS' Rachel and Steven confirm their shock break-up
Despite that, they were both devastated and wondered whether it was the right decision.
Sound complicated? Don't they know it!
View gallery
Rachel and Steven's Final Vows
Alissa and David – exes
We have a feeling Alissa is going to have a lot to say as she comes face to face with David again at the Reunion.
At Final Vows, he broke up with her and then walked away without hearing what she'd written ... a controversial move the group definitely wanted to unpack at Reunion!
EXCLUSIVE: David refuses to say sorry for brutal Final Vow snub as Alissa demands apology
Alissa still read her vows... to no one. Nine
While Alissa was hoping for an apology for what she said was "the most disrespectful thing" anyone had ever done to her, David stood by his decision and wasn't offering any sorrys!
The Married At First Sight Reunion Dinner Party airs Sunday, April 12 at 7pm with the Reunion Commitment Ceremony continuing on Monday, April 13 at 7:30pm on Channel 9 and 9Now.
Want the official inside scoop on MAFS, unfiltered and unseen? Watch After The Dinner Party here. Episodes stream weekly, immediately following the explosive Married at First Sight Dinner Party episode on Channel 9 and 9Now.
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