Farmer Wants A Wife fans were left devastated when Renae quit the show, and now, Dylan has broken his silence to New Idea.
Renae had been a clear frontrunner after the initial speed dates, but things quickly cooled off, and she was left on the verge of a panic attack after Dylan ended things.
Speaking to New Idea, Dylan has hit back at fan backlash over how he handled his final conversation with Renae, which reduced her to tears.
“I found that really tricky because, from what I’ve seen online, a lot of people don’t like how I handled it, but, if I’m dead honest, I just wanted to be honest with her at the time,” he tells us.
“I think the way that Renae left, I think I could have handled it with a bit more warmth towards her.
“But at the end of the day, I didn’t want to waste any more of her time.”
Dylan also hit back at suggestions that he didn’t make any effort with Renae, insisting he had actually pushed to take her on a date but wasn’t able to, given the double date had to see one of the women eliminated.
“I tried to [take her on a date], but unfortunately it didn’t happen,” he explains.
“For example, if I were to take Renae on the date with Lily and Ally, that wouldn’t make a lot of sense because Renae’s just helped me out with the footy game, and then I’m taking her on a date where someone gets eliminated, that doesn’t make sense to be on that one.
“I think it was just the story that [production] had in mind or something.”
While Renae said she felt like Dylan didn’t give her a chance after her first day on the farm, he insists that wasn’t the case.
“Renee kind of took a step back […] she’d be quieter and all that kind of stuff,” he says.
“I mean, I’ve read a few different things that Renee’s spoken in, and she said she was just as involved as everyone else.
“But I mean, I might not have been there for that because I certainly didn’t see it.
“I came in needing someone who was social and was outgoing, and it is difficult when you’re in a group setting to really, I suppose, envision how someone’s going to be in the future when they’re just sitting back and not contributing.”
“She’s so sweet, and she really is down to earth, and I think that’s why a lot of people watching the show connect with her so much,” he adds.
Though Dylan felt they weren’t a good match, he heaped praise on her as a “great” person and wished he’d handled their “break-up” conversation slightly better.
“The show opens up a lot of ways of self-development on how to handle situations,” he says of the show, not directly referencing the Renae chat.
“I’m watching it back like, ‘You should have done this better or you didn’t handle that very well’, or just certain bits and pieces that I watch back now, and I’m like, definitely could have done that better or or something like that,” he says about filming generally, not directly referencing the Renae chat.
“But at the end of the day, I had to handle it the way that I did to grow in the way that I have now.”
Renae told New Idea that she felt that Dylan never gave her a chance and “gave up” on their connection after her first day on the farm, when she was more reserved.
“I was disappointed that Dylan and I never had the chance to explore our connection any further,” she said.
“I felt like he gave up on us before we really had the opportunity to see if there was any genuine potential there.”
“Looking back now, one of the things that hurt the most was that he never chose me for a date based on what he saw and felt that first day on the farm,” she added.
She felt she didn’t have a chance to connect with Dylan because she never got taken on a date, adding, “It made it difficult to know where I stood and to fully explore what our connection could have been.”
Though she was heartbroken when things didn’t work out with Dylan, it has helped her realise what she wants in a partner.
“At the time, that was quite hurtful and difficult to process,” she told us.
“However, looking back, it’s taught me to not chase something that isn’t equally pursued and trust that the right person will choose me just as much as I choose them.”
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