CONTENT WARNING: Mentions of abuse, violence, and threatened suicide.
When it comes to reality TV, Netflix cannot catch a break. It seems every single one of their reality productions is plagued with some kind of lawsuit or controversy. For a long time now, many groups have raised concerns over ethical questions around Love Is Blind.
Many contestants have reported that the LIB experience was traumatic, and not just emotionally so. 2023 brought new physical concerns as well. If only it had ended there. Now, Season 5 contestant Renee Pocheis speaking out about her safety concerns.
Renee details her fears about her match, Carter
On January 3, TMZ revealed the details of a lawsuit they obtained between Renee Poche and Netflix. Renee claimed that producers from Netflix and Love is Blind’s production company, Delirium TV, matched her with a dangerous partner. Renee alleged that she was forced to spend long stretches with this man despite voicing her concerns about him.
Carter Wall, Renee’s predetermined match, was allegedly unemployed, addicted to drugs, broke, and violent at the time of appearing on LIB. Other terms used to describe Carter included “lying” and “emotionally unstable.” While things initially went well for Carter and Renee, she soon learned Carter was lying about many aspects of himself, including his readiness to marry.
Renee considered her rigorous background check to appear on the show and could only assume Carter was under the same scrutiny. As such, she’s accused production of knowing about Carter’s “troubling issues” and “mental instability” beforehand. Among other accusations, Renee also claimed that Carter threatened a camera operator.
Why didn’t Renee and Carter’s romance air?
Producers allegedly threatened legal action if Renee didn’t move forward with her engagement, despite the reported emotional abuse. Despite these obligations, producers also warned Renee about letting Carter be anywhere around firearms.
In the end, Renee was informed that her relationship with Carter would be cut from the program, because, as she claims, Carter threatened to take his life if the footage aired. Renee has further claimed that Netflix and Delirium are trying to ruin her for going public with all of this information.
While Renee was only paid $8,000 for her appearance on the show, Netflix is reportedly seeking $4 million from her for violating her NDA. Renee fired back with claims that the NDA was unlawful. She’s reportedly seeking a declaration from the court that the NDA is indeed illegal.
TELL US – WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THIS LAWSUIT? DO YOU THINK RENEE’S CLAIMS ARE TRUE?
