Married At First Sight groom Chris Nield hasn’t failed to spark controversy during his time on the reality TV show.
The dating show returned to air on Monday, February 2, and it wasn’t long before jaws were dropping over one shocking comment.
Chris, 31, quickly divided opinion with his shocking audition tape comments, and his bride, Brook Crompton, was left raging after watching the footage.
His audition clip saw him asked what “turns him off”, to which he shockingly replied, “Fake tan, needy and fat people.”
He was accused of being “fatphobic” and now, Chris has finally broken his silence on his outrageous comments.
Appearing on Stan’s spin-off show, MAFS: After The Dinner Party, Chris was grilled on his behaviour and asked whether his comments came from a place of “insecurity”.
“I don’t think it’s insecurity, I just think it’s me not being smart and mature,” Chris conceded.
Host Brittany Hockley grilled him on whether he realised how “horrific” his “fatphobic” comments were, to which he replied, “Yeah, definitely, it’s how I’ve been throughout my lifee and I’ve never been called out.”
“That’s a terrible thing in itself; I should be figuring it out along the way.”
Chris admitted he couldn’t watch the episodes back due to “secondhand embarrassment”, but host Jules Lund was unconvinced, questioning if the groom was “playing” them.
“I don’t think in that amount of time that he’s changed, and I’m starting to wonder if this is all for show,” Jules argued.
Jules pointed out that Chris had posted on Instagram “holding up a sign making jokes about fat girls still”, before Chris argued that the phrase had been “crossed out” in his post.
“I know it was crossed out and you’re saying no short girls,” Jules added, before Chris said he was adopting the narrative that girls want “a 6ft5 guy”
“Can you see that there’s people sitting at home just going ‘this is just so convenient?'” Jules asked.
“Yeah, the one thing that I definitely haven’t done my whole life is filter thoughts before they come out of my mouth,” Chris replied.
“I’m very impulsive, I’m very in the moment, that’s not an excuse, it’s just how I’ve been.”
Jules said he would give him “the benefit of the doubt”, while Brittany said she hoped he was a changed man.
Read all about the drama that engulfed Chris’s time on MAFS below.
Why did Chris cause controversy on MAFS?
Chris first sparked outrage with his shocking audition tape comments, before he doubled down at the Bucks party.
Chris’s controversial antics saw fellow groom Danny, 34, remark that he was “stirring the pot” and provoking the other grooms.
When asked what he was looking for in a bride, he replied, “Looks are massive for me; it’s not all about the personality, surely,” raising eyebrows.
He was then grilled on his “deal breaker”, to which he shockingly responded, “Overweight. It can be harsh, but I’m not afraid to say it.”
Chris then said he wouldn’t call someone “fat” on the street, before adding that he is generally only interested in “fit and healthy” people.
His comments sent the grooms into a state of shock, while viewers at home also reacted with outrage.
Chris was then matched up with model Brook Crompton, who was left shocked after watching his audition tape.
She insisted she never would have given him a chance if she had seen the tape, and was urged to “run” by her sister on a phone call.
The drama ultimately led to Brook quitting the experiment and flying back to the Gold Coast, and she is now engaged to her ex-boyfriend, Harry, and pregnant.
Who is MAFS groom Chris Nield?
Hailing from Melbourne, Victoria, Chris works as a construction supervisor.
He started his career as a tradie before being promoted, and “loves telling people what to do and has little patience for people who can’t do their jobs properly”.
According to the show’s description, Chris has claimed to have “given up” his old partying and “player” ways after living the “classic tradie/footy lifestyle”.
He is described as a “boy’s boy” who doesn’t have any platonic friendships with women and will “bend” the truth to avoid issues in a relationship.
Chris has called himself honest, upfront and sometimes controversial for the sake of it, as he looks to make an unforgettable impression on MAFS.
Though he is sceptical about the experiment finding him his perfect match, he is hoping he will be proved wrong at the altar.
Meet the full 2026 cast of MAFS here.
