Austin Reed and Michael Shiakallis are speaking out in defense of Married at First Sight Afterparty host Keisha Knight Pulliam after an intense season.
The men had nothing but nice things to say about their experience with Keisha during a livestream.
The duo shared behind-the-scenes details about Season 17 and answered questions from viewers about the show.
It marked the first time hearing from Austin, who’s been very private since his rocky marriage to Becca Haley garnered a slew of criticism.
Michael and Austin covered a lot of ground while reflecting on the season, and the MAFS Afterparty was a topic of conversation because, if we’re being honest, it was more entertaining than the actual show.
One episode in particular that garnered a lot of fan reaction involved a tense interaction with Keisha and Emily Balch.
Austin and Michael were the ideal cast members to comment on that because they were guests at the Afterparty when the confrontation occurred.
Austin Reed defends MAFS Afterparty host Keisha Knight Pulliam
During the Instagram Live, Austin and Michael were asked about working with the MAFS Afterparty host, and it was all love for Keisha.
“Honestly, I loved Keisha,” exclaimed Austin. “I loved her, I loved her husband. I think that they both did a really good job of not only moderating…but also asking the things that some people wanna know and trying to get both sides of the story.”
Austin’s castmate Emily Balch had the opposite reaction to Keisha and her husband after an Afterparty appearance. She became combative over Keisha’s line of questioning.
The 29-year-old later took to social media and accused Keisha of “silencing” and “gaslighting” the women after ex-husband Brennan Shoykhet and castmate Cameron Frazer appeared on the show.
Meanwhile, Emily seems to be the only one who doesn’t like Keisha because Michael Shiakallis sang her praises after Austin spoke his peace.
Michael Shiakallis says Keisha was ‘always super nice’
Michael also talked about his interactions with Keisha, telling viewers that he agreed with Austin “100 percent” and that the host was “always super nice.”
He addressed an Afterparty episode where Keisha asked about his sexuality — something fans had questioned due to his unique and sometimes feminine sense of style.
However, the 39-year-old defended Keisha, noting, “Before we started taping, she asked me if it was cool that she asked that.”
“She felt like ‘Look, I think there may be a section of the audience that just is curious just because you are so fashion forward…do you mind if I ask that?’ I was like, ‘nah, go ahead,'” continued Michael. “She was always very respectful.”
Married at First Sight is currently on hiatus.