"It’s bittersweet" — Married at First Sight Australia star Ashleigh admits she has “no regrets" for the experience after exiting show

Married at First Sight Australia star Ashleigh Ackerman exited the experiment in episode 9, which aired on February 9, 2025. Her departure followed a rule break by her on-screen husband Jake Luik, who left the experiment the morning after their first Commitment Ceremony.

While Ashleigh had voted to stay and work through their issues, Jake voted to leave. According to the show's rules, couples in this situation were expected to stay for one more week, but Jake chose to pack his bags and exit early.

One week later, on February 18, 2025, Ashleigh shared a photo on Instagram reflecting on her time in the experiment. In the caption, she expressed appreciation for the experience:

"It’s bittersweet this once in a lifetime opportunity for personal growth was cut short, but I’m proud I was completely myself & stood by my values every step of the way - so absolutely no regrets!" she wrote in the caption.

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Ashleigh opens up about her exit from Married at First Sight Australia

Ashleigh’s time on Married at First Sight Australia came to an end in episode 9. She and Jake had just attended their first Commitment Ceremony, where she wrote “stay” and he wrote “leave.” As per the show’s rules, couples in disagreement were required to stay for another week to see if things could improve. However, the next morning, Jake packed his bags and left without notice.

In an exclusive interview following the episode with 9now in February 2025, Ashleigh spoke about what happened behind the scenes.

“[Jake] just turned around the next morning and packed his stuff and said ‘I’m out of here,’” she said.

She added:

“Even if we didn't find love together, I was really hopeful to even learn more about myself.”

She went on to say that Jake’s sudden departure took away the chance for that. Ashleigh said that him leaving without communicating "upset her." Referring to Jake’s actions, she said:

“So I just think, shame on you buddy, you selfish, selfish little man child.”

Ashleigh had earlier believed they had a good connection. She said he was friendly and things felt "really comfortable and easy," but her view changed after moving in, noticing he wasn’t taking the experiment as seriously.

She added the more she got to know him, the less attractive she found him and he wasn’t on the "same level of emotional intelligence" as her. She said their connection began to fade in Married at First Sight Australia.

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Jake’s comments sparked tension and led to further conflict

During the Photo Ranking task in Married at First Sight Australia, Jake made several remarks about the other brides which bothered Ashleigh. He described Jacqui as having “crazy eyes” and said Sierah looked like someone who could “stab you in your sleep.” He also commented that Morena was “too old” but added he “would’ve given her a fair crack back in the day.”

Referring to Awhina, he said he “typically went for Caucasian women,” and prefaced his comment with “I’m not racist.” Ashleigh was not comfortable with the remarks. She raised the issue during the Commitment Ceremony in Married at First Sight Australia and also spoke to bride Sierah about the same. Jake was upset that Ashleigh had shared the information, calling it a “betrayal.”

In her interview, Ashleigh said:

“Nobody else thought it was a joke, with the rest of the group being as outraged as I was,” she shared.

Jake later shared in a separate interview with Daily Mail in February 2025, that he regretted the comments:

“The production crew weren’t happy with anything I was saying... so I just said something stupid,” he stated.

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Fans can watch the previous episodes of Married at First Sight Australia on 9now.