A Ranking of the 15 Most Memorable Relationship Moments on Reality TV in 2025
We all need 2025 to be over immediately — no one more than the victims of the best moments on reality TV romance and dating shows. It was the Year of the Snake, and snaky behavior was everywhere.
But we won’t be too harsh; there was just enough good on dating shows to make us believe in love for another year. Well… that or go back to swiping endlessly on Tinder, right?
From Love Island to Love Is Blind, Mormon wifeys to Real Housewives, we’ve rounded up the most shocking, swoonworthy, and downright horrifying moments on reality TV in 2025.
15. Manchild Joe, Love Is Blind
Season 9 of Love Is Blind was a wild, wild ride, hence why it will take up so much real estate on this list. But one tiny, seemingly insignificant moment deserves special recognition: Joe Ferrucci abruptly fleeing his tux fitting to sit alone in his truck and spiral.
Production, however, got the last laugh by scoring the scene to Sabrina Carpenter‘s “Manchild.” Folks, it truly does not get better than this. This is peak fourth-wall breaking. The second we heard Sab’s drawn-out “Oh, boy,” we were wheezing. That licensing fee had to be the entire music budget, and it was worth every single cent.
14. One Night Only Reunion, Perfect Match
Oof. This one stung. Clayton Echard is making his moves on Perfect Match when — who walks in? His ex Rachel Recchia, one of the women he famously turned down on The Bachelor.
Netflix
Clayton quickly pulled Rachel aside after she arrived on a date with Freddie Powell. Seeing her, he confessed, “[Rachel is] the last person I thought would walk in. I almost got married to Rachel on The Bachelor, but found love a few too many times. Three times, to be exact. I had to tell the two women there [Rachel and Gabby Windey] that I had been intimate with both of them and that I expressed feelings of love to both of them as well. You can imagine how well that went.”
He somehow convinced her to match with him, pitching it as fate and a second chance. Bless her heart, she wanted to believe him, so she did.
Cue the literal next morning: Clayton’s “intuition” kicked in, and he dumped Rachel. Again.
The worst part? We’ve all been Rachel in this scenario. And honestly… it still sucks.
13. Too Much Girlies, Love Island USA
It was the year of the Too Much girlies. Lola Young’s “Messy” was still on the airwaves, Lena Dunham literally created a show called Too Much, and Amaya Papaya became our ultimate spirit animal.
Amaya wore her heart on her sleeve — and yes, people criticized her for it. During one challenge, all the boys (and we won’t deign to call them men) piled on, calling her too emotional and saying she’s moving too fast. She was legit holding back sobs as they attacked her. Then she dropped the truth bomb of the century:
“Many people could view this as a weakness, but to me personally, after everything I’ve been through in my life, I view it as a strength. So if you guys view it like that, then guess what? I’m just not your cup of tea to be drinking, so don’t f**king drink it.”
From that moment, Amaya became the ultimate Too Much girl — a beacon of unapologetic emotion — and gave us hope once more.
12. The Non-Breakup Breakup, Love Is Blind
We told you we’d be back with more Love Is Blind Season 9, and this time it’s the breakup that genuinely confused a nation.
Just hours after meeting her fiancé, Kacie Anita McIntosh asks to see Patrick Suzuki again — not to celebrate, but to… kind of break up? She tells him she doesn’t want to go to Baja; she wants to go home. Patrick is understandably spiraling. Is she dumping him? What is happening?
Kacie reassures him that she’s not breaking up with him. She clings to him, kisses him, and later even straddles him. And yet! She also tells the cameras she isn’t physically attracted to him and that he deserves someone who is.
Later (shockingly), we learn the pair actually broke it off shortly after getting home. Kacie then goes on to date another Pod Squad member — a certain Manchild, if you will. All comes out at the LIB reunion.
This was the most confusing non-breakup breakup of 2025, and honestly, one of the realest moments reality TV has ever given us. Because who among us hasn’t been dumped in a way where no one technically said, “I’m dumping you?”
11. AD and Ollie: The Love Story, Perfect Match
Technically, these two lovebirds began their respective journeys on Love Is Blind and Love Is Blind: UK, but they ultimately found each other on Perfect Match. It was admittedly a bit of a spoiler — we learned about their relationship before Season 3 even aired, thanks to the announcement of their engagement and pregnancy — but that didn’t stop us from loving every second of watching AD Smith and Ollie Sutherland fall for each other.
Their season wasn’t without setbacks or outside suitors, but somehow, they always found their way back to one another. When it finally clicked, it was genuinely joyful to watch. If nothing else, their love story gave us the proof we so desperately needed that, yes, dating shows can actually work out.
10. The Fruity Pebbles Reveal, The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives
Now we’re being a little cheeky because this key moment technically happened off-screen. But it was caught on a phone camera and shared on TikTok, so we’re absolutely claiming it as a canon event.
Ever since Season 1 of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, we’ve been desperate to know what “Fruity Pebbles” actually meant, especially after Whitney Leavitt gifted Demi Engemann a box of them, much to her visible horror. Well, in the latest strike in the ongoing Battle of Demi vs. Jessi, the latter finally spilled the milk. Yep.
“So, since she wants to be petty and be an a**hole, I think I’m just gonna go ahead and say that Grandpa Bret likes to drink her piss like it’s dirty soda, and he gulps it down like water — and that’s what ‘Fruity Pebbles’ is.”
No shade to kinks, obviously, but we are… slightly taken aback by the branding. Demi later took to social media to address the situation and confirm the reveal.
“What my husband and I did one time behind closed doors was a consensual and private experience in our marriage. I won’t let a private act between my husband and I be a distraction from a serious act that I did not consent to.”
She continued, “I shared this information with Jessi in confidence nearly two years ago. It’s very telling that she’s choosing to bring it up now, only after her own affair has come to light. This is nothing more than a desperate attempt to shift attention away from her own behavior.”
In true internet fashion, Demi and Grandpa Bret later made a series of TikToks to prove they’re fully in on the joke because if you can’t laugh through the chaos, what can you do?
9. Virgin Awareness, Are You My First? and Virgin Island
Let’s bring some joy to the best moments on reality TV in 2025. Two dating shows this year focused on individuals who were still virgins finding love: Are You My First? and Virgin Island. Both shows not only entertained but also raised awareness and fought stigma around choosing to remain a virgin as an adult.
Too often, adults who make this choice are stereotyped or isolated, so seeing it normalized on national television was a big, beautiful step forward, and we are here for it.
8. Taylor and Dakota (again, again), The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives
Whenever Taylor Frankie Paul and Dakota Mortensen inevitably get back together, all we can hear is Taylor Swift singing, “I think I’ve seen this film before.” And honestly? We don’t blame her — we’ve all returned to an ex we probably shouldn’t. But Season 3 of TSLOMW? It was next-level wild.
While attending a country music festival as a crew, Dakota had an adult sleepover with Taylor and was spotted leaving her room the next morning. Things seemed promising again between these two. He promised she knew everything there was to know.
Then Jessi’s husband Jordan Ngatikaura dropped a bomb: There was one thing Taylor didn’t know. Dakota had been sexting a friend of Taylor’s mom. Yikes. And that was… bad. Not just for Taylor, but for her whole family. Dakota refused to continue filming, Taylor tried to confront the friend, and at the reunion, Dakota demanded that all the women leave the room or he wouldn’t participate. Sir, the women are the show.
It was messy. Truly, painfully messy. But maybe — just maybe — it was so awful that Taylor can finally be free and move on from a man who can never love her the way she deserves. Here’s hoping we see her reclaim happiness on her upcoming season of The Bachelorette.
7. The Photobooth Debate, Love Is Blind: UK
Love Is Blind over the pond delivered its fair share of drama, too. But out of all of Season 2, one debate stood out above the rest.
Javen Palmer — aka Katisha Atkinson’s fiancé — went out partying with some of the others and apparently got a little too close to Sophie Willett. Megan Jupp reported it, saying she’d want to know herself, and Javen defended himself by claiming they were just arguing… in a photobooth.
And here’s where things got wild: Did the photobooth have a curtain? Javen said no, making it less of a weird, private situation. The others insisted it did. The debate raged on like a true reality-TV fever dream, only finally getting resolved at the reunion. And honestly? We were here for every minute of it.
6. The Sex Playlist, The Ultimatum: Queer Love
The second (and heartbreakingly final) season of The Ultimatum: Queer Love was pure jaw drop after jaw drop. But if we had to pick one unforgettable moment from reality TV romance in 2025, it would be… the sex playlist.
Dayna Mathews and Mel Vitale’s Spotify sex playlist accidentally leaked to their ex, and chaos ensued. It sparked endless online debates: Do sex playlists count as receipts? Can you actually listen to a former sex playlist? And, most importantly, what songs would your playlist include? Bonus: It kinda proves the couples weren’t lying about not getting intimate — reader, they probably were.
Somehow, Dayna managed to yell at her ex, Magan, during the changeover, and despite all the chaos, both couples still left engaged. Reality TV magic, truly.
5. Nicolandria, Love Island USA
The love that stole a nation. Olandria Carthen and Nic Vansteenberghe weren’t exactly a case of love at first sight — or at least, a match at first sight. This is classic friends-to-lovers energy, and the way their love grew? Pure magic. Viewers could immediately tell they had serious feelings, and it felt like the ultimate pantomime of hoping the lil people in the box would catch on, too.
Ben Symons / Peacock
Since leaving the villa, Nicolandria has only grown stronger. There was a brief scare with breakup rumors, but false alarms, thank god. Most recently, they became holiday cover stars, showcasing winter love in all its frosty, heart-melting glory.
#Nicolandria4eva
4. The Husband Swap, Married at First Sight: UK
MAFS is basically an institution at this point, and any fan can tell you the U.S., UK, and Australia versions are worlds apart.
But on the latest season of Married at First Sight: UK, the drama was next-level. Julia-Ruth Smith ended things with her husband, Divarni Balogun, then spontaneously jetted off to Lanzarote with someone else’s ex from the show, Joe Wood. His ex-wife, Maeve Mathieson, called her out during the reunion, and Julia-Ruth defended herself — again on social media — by saying Joe had then ghosted her despite her thinking this was going somewhere. Okay…???
Her shock confession came amid rumors that she was also planning to meet up with another male costar for a date. And in the same frosty scene, she casually told the other brides that Nelly Patel’s ex-husband Steven Springett had reached out to ask her to “go for a drink.”
Steven had left the show after being accused of using Hinge during filming, only to slide into Julia-Ruth’s DMs shortly after.
This is wild. Truly, wild.
3. No Scissoring, Supposedly, The Real Housewives of Miami
Honestly, the Real Housewives franchise just keeps growing, and we are living for it. Picking a favorite is impossible, though Miami is a strong contender after that Season 7 reunion.
In Part 1 of The Real Housewives of Miami Season 7 reunion, Julia Lemigova dropped the ultimate bombshell: She allegedly slept with costar Adriana de Moura. The revelation came up during a chat about their fractured friendship.
Adriana claimed the rift was due to changes in Julia’s personality, but Julia fired back with her own tea, aka a supposedly romantic moment in the Hamptons. “I would like to say something that I think would bring clarity, hopefully, why we are where we are,” she said. “In the Hamptons, Adriana and I slept together.”
Adriana didn’t miss a beat: “I never scissored anybody.” Julia stayed firm, later telling Andy Cohen backstage, “We slept together once, then we fooled around in the Versace mansion.”
We love that Adriana specified she “never scissored,” leaving plenty of room for interpretation. Honestly, we’re here for a queer journey, however it looks.
2. Landing Strip Chat, Love Is Blind
The last time we’ll mention Love Is Blind Season 9 — we swear — but the show was simply overflowing with NSFW moments, and we had to highlight at least one. Sorry, but it’s Kacie and Patrick again.
Back in the pods, Kacie launched into some of the most unexpected dirty talk we’ve ever witnessed — and trust us, we’ve survived the Wild West of Hinge. Out of nowhere, she started discussing… her landing strip.
She explained that she got waxed to be “ready for [her] man,” and even offered to remove it “literally in one pull.” For context, Patrick had also described himself as being as smooth as a “baby seal,” which may explain how we got here.
From there, the conversation fully devolved into what can only be described as pod phone sex, leaving Patrick — and the viewers at home — deeply, deeply confused.
1. Big Brother (and Your Partner) is Watching, Big Brother: UK
ITV
The biggest reality TV romance of 2025 has to be… JoJo Siwa and Chris Hughes. Nothing else even came close to stealing the world’s attention like this. It didn’t matter if you’d never watched Big Brother before, couldn’t tell Chris Hughes from Chris Pratt, or couldn’t recognize a JoJo Siwa bow — this was a scandal like no other.
On the show, JoJo and Chris got increasingly close, though they insisted it was strictly as friends (who cuddle). Meanwhile, JoJo’s partner, content creator Kath Ebbs, was watching and defending their girlfriend.
Then the show ended… and Kath finally reunited with JoJo at the afterparty, only to be dumped, according to their TikTok.
From there, everything spiraled. Kath gave an exclusive interview about the split, JoJo and Chris hard-launched their relationship, and the world kept waiting for Ashton Kutcher to pop out and tell us we’d been Punk’d! Spoiler: We’re still waiting.
