Married At First Sight (MAFS) 2026 seems to have mismatched some couples for drama. Single mum Gia Fleur was horrified when she found out her husband Scott McCristal felt “freedom” without kids in the picture, and now we have another sticky storyline involving gay grooms Sam Stanton and Chris Robinson. During their wedding, viewers found out that Chris has two babies on the way via surrogacy, but when he tried to find out Sam’s opinion on children, his new husband said he didn’t want children anytime soon.
However, Sam tells Chattr this was played up for the cameras, and his nonchalance was due to the fact he “didn’t think that was a possibility”.
“I have always been open to children, and it’s always come down to the person that I’m with will determine whether I have kids [or not]. It’s never been an absolute necessity for me, but it’s definitely never been a dealbreaker for me either, and that’s the conversation I had with the experts [before they matched us],” Sam says.
“When they’re showing me [at the wedding reception] talk about how I don’t want kids this year, [it’s because] in my head, I’m like, ‘That’s not even an option’… how could there possibly be children [soon]?”
The groom adds he was clear when applying for the show that he would also be open to dating a single father, so the idea of kids in the mix really doesn’t bother him.
“Someone having kids is definitely not a reason I wouldn’t date them. [It] definitely comes down to just, I’m a pretty reasonable person. I’m not gonna not be with someone who’s perfect in every other way just because they have kids, you know?” Sam says. “So [Chris] having kids on the way is not going to be a problem, because I’m open to it.”
Sam isn’t sure why Chris kept his surrogacy journey a secret
Chris has remained tight-lipped about his baby plans so far, and wants to tell Sam once the pair are more connected. Sam isn’t sure it was the right choice, but he admits there was no handbook on how to approach the situation.
“It would have been better if [Chris] just told me straight away [about the babies on the way]. I think it’s information that’s important about the life that I’m going to have with Chris, but ultimately, I also understand and empathise with the fact that he wants to get to know me first and wanted to get me to get to know him before I knew that news,” the groom muses.
“I’ve gone back and forth in my head whether it was the right way or the wrong way. And I think when I go back and forth on something that many times, it just means there wasn’t a right or wrong way. It was just whatever the journey was meant to be for me or him and for me.”
There aren’t that many strong couples in the MAFS experiment at the moment, but Chris and Sam could be a success story. The groom says he can see himself falling in love with Chris in the future.
“He’s a handsome dude and we just have so much in common,” Sam spills. “I can just picture us going to the gym, going for camping trips away together. I think especially listening to our vows and our speeches, I’m like wow, I really, really see why the experts have put us together.”
Married at First Sight (MAFS) 2026 airs Sunday – Wednesday on Channel 9 and 9Now.
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