Exclusive Interview

‘Love Is Blind’: Madison Maidenberg Breaks Down Her Shocking Reunion With Ex Joe Ferrucci

[Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers for Love Is Blind Season 9.]

This season, Madison Maidenberg wasn’t the only Love Is Blind star to have her heart broken by the end of the season. Instead, viewers were shocked to watch as, for the first time in Love Is Blind history, every single couple split at the altar — if they even made it to their wedding day.

Now that the historic season has come to an end, Madison sat down with Swooon to reveal everything that went down off-camera between her fiancé Joe Ferrucci‘s tux fitting and their explosive final conversation on-camera. Plus, Madison revealed what happened when she reunited with Joe after filming ended, and, trust us, this is one update we did not see coming. Scroll to read our full conversation with the Love Is Blind star ahead of the Season 9 reunion.

It’s clear that you and Joe broke up off-camera. Can you walk us through what happened between Joe’s tux fitting and the conversation we saw?

Madison Maidenberg: The night of the tux fitting, we had a conversation off-camera, and I kind of sat down with him and was like, “Look, we’re at this precipice. If you jump, I’ll jump. And, you know, I really want to do this with you. Where is your head at?” At this point, I know I’m not getting answers from him on-camera, so we’re having this kind of more heart-to-heart, finally off-camera. His face dropped, he kind of went pale, and he said, “You’re not it. If we go to the altar, I’m saying ‘no.'” And this is at like, 3:00 AM, we’re supposed to go to brunch with my mom and sister the next morning.

So what you’re actually seeing is that phone call is after he had left, we had a whole conversation the next morning, where production came in. They filmed us in the morning. And I’m still trying to be like, “Is this done? Do you want to try to date outside of the experiment, you know, like trying to get a sense for what the hell is going on?” And then ultimately, what you see on camera is that final night. It was really a three-part breakup.

Would you have said “yes” at the altar?

Madison: I think that I would have. I am such a lover girl, and when I commit, I commit wholeheartedly. I really wanted to see this through and give it a fair shot, because I’ve seen the experiment work for other beautiful couples. I think that I really idealized him and our relationship, instead of looking at the reality and the red flags.

Have you been in contact with Joe at all since filming ended?

Madison: After filming, he did call me about a week later. I don’t even know how long we talked for, but we talked on the phone a little bit, and I was trying to get a little more clarity, a little bit more of an understanding of what didn’t work. Maybe try to have something a little bit more amicable come from it. And I just didn’t feel like that conversation had a whole lot of dialogue.

We did end up meeting to get dinner, probably about two or three weeks after the fact, and we talked a little bit. It was not normal. I still didn’t get any answers or clarity. And then he walks me to my car, and we’re saying goodbye, and we hug, and then we share a kiss, and then he starts tearing up. And it was a very confusing time. I didn’t understand the tears. I’m like, “You ended things with me, like, I don’t… What are you feeling?” And so I texted him and was like, “Let’s play a game: Name that emotion.” And he never responded.

Wait, so you ended up kissing him after you had broken up? Was that kiss in the heat of the moment, or did either of you think that was going somewhere?

Madison: I think that it was just kind of like a goodbye kiss. I mean, it turned into a little bit of a make-out session, which, you know, is just a mindf**k and confusing in and of itself. But, yeah, I don’t think I thought anything was going anywhere with it.

This was the first season that no couples ended up together. What do you think happened there?

Madison: You know, that’s hard to say. I mean, we’re all such different people, and such different individuals. I don’t know if it’s just something in the water here in Denver or what. I think that we just, unfortunately, didn’t find the right pairings.

I’m not really shocked at any of those splits. I mean, just knowing the people more intimately, I think that now it makes sense that none of us ended up together. But that’s not to say that I don’t think the rest of my cast is also incredible in their own ways, individually.

What’s something you wish viewers knew about this season?

Madison: I think at the end of the day, I really want people to remember that we’re all people, too, and we aren’t just characters on a screen. I was unfortunately operating out of a very insecure place because of some of the things that Joe had said to me earlier in the season. And I do wish that I could have not let those things influence me as much, because I wasn’t operating from a place of confidence anymore. [I was] operating from a place of fear and insecurity.

I also want to say that I do have an incredible therapist, and I have done a ton of self-work. This experiment really opens your eyes to some things that, you know, if you allow it, can teach you to be a better version of you. And that’s something that I’ve been really, really working on. I’m more confident, happier, and thriving than ever, and I think that’s something that’s important.

What can you tease about the reunion?

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Madison: You’ll finally get all the tea spills. I mean, you definitely see me having to confront some things, and I think finding my voice a lot more than the viewers got to see initially. It was great to have some of us together. But, I think it is difficult, right? I mean, it’s hard to have to revisit things that you have healed from and dealt with, and have that wound reopened. But I was able to say the things that I needed to say, and I definitely got the closure that I needed.

Love Is Blind, Season 9, Episodes 1-12, Streaming Now, Netflix

Love Is Blind, Season 9, Reunion, October 29 at 9/8c, Netflix