"Softest excuse"— Married at First Sight Australia fans react to Carina defending Paul's "physical violence"

Married at First Sight Australia season 12 episode 21 featured the latest Commitment Ceremony. During the segment, the couples' futures on the show were decided as they decided whether they wanted to stay or leave.

As Paul and Carina were called to the couch, John told them he wanted to get straight to the point. He recalled Paul talking about an "incident" that happened at the dinner party and criticized him for the same.

As he asked the male cast member to explain, the cast member recalled what happened the night he punched the wall while angry with Carina. Paul said he felt "trapped" and "completely lost control. As the experts criticized Paul for his behavior, Carina said that while she was disheartened and uncomfortable, she and Paul were still learning about each other's boundaries.

Fans of the reality show commented on Carina's comments online and felt she was making excuses for Paul's behavior. One person wrote on X:

"Europeans are passionate." What is Carina on about? That's the softest excuse for physical violence."

"Everyone on this cast needs to speak to a real professional. Is Carina making excuses for Paul. Girl if you're not scared of Paul you should be. Just like Awhina should be scared of Adrian. They should both run," a fan commented.

"Just plain horrible how he acted... No excuse!" a tweet read.

Fans of Married at First Sight Australia season 12 fans termed Paul's actions "violent intimidation":

"It's not jealousy, passion, or anything else, Carina. It's violent intimidation," a person wrote.

"The fact is Carina thinks that’s “passion” is more concerning," a fan commented.

"Sorry Carina, but being Italian myself, that’s such a bullsh*t excuse. What Paul did wasn’t ‘passion,’ it was just plain violent. He should’ve been immediately removed from the show," a tweet read.

Fans of Married at First Sight Australia season 12 further said:

"Did Carina really just say he truly loves her / is passionate and that’s why he’s punching doors??" a person wrote.

"Omg Carina… being used to toxic behaviour is just wrong. Yes you can be passionate not freaking aggressive," a fan commented.

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"This is not normal behavior"— Mel calls out Carina justifying Paul punching a hole in the wall on Married at First Sight Australia season 12 episode 21

In Married at First Sight Australia season 12 episode 21, the experts asked Carina how she felt when Paul punched a hole in the wall. The female cast member noted that at the time of the incident, she was disheartened and uncomfortable.

The female Married at First Sight Australia season 12 star said she didn't condone Paul's behavior. However, the two were still learning about each other and each other's boundaries, including what should or shouldn't be said.

Carina said she believed Paul felt "a little bit uncomfortable" and "embarrassed." The camera panned to several other cast members, all of whom didn't agree with what Carina was saying. Ryan told Jacqui quietly that the Married at First Sight Australia star was minimizing what her husband did.

"Seeing how he reacts when I bring up my past has shown me that he does have strong feelings towards me," Carina said.

Carina added that Paul's actions showed that it was a real relationship. She said they were passionate about each other. She explained that she was European and said people in Europe were passionate. She added it was kind of what relationships were.

"Oh I'm sorry I need to jump in here. I cannot sit here and listen to this justification from you. This is not normal behavior, sweetheart," expert Mel Schilling said.

She added that it was not how love was shown and was "deeply troubling." Alessandra chimed in and said that she knew passion as a Latina and said it was not what she was portraying.

Carina said she wasn't scared of Paul because he had not given her a reason to be apart from that one incident. She added that she didn't know what to say and she didn't condone what he did.

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Episodes of Married at First Sight Australia season 12 are available to stream on 9Now.