Married At First Sight EXCLUSIVE: Channel Nine is forced to remove a racy scene involving Jessika Power and Daniel Webb – after things ‘escalated’ during a couples massage
Married At First Sight received dozens of formal complaints after airing a sexually suggestive scene involving Jessika Power and Daniel Webb on Monday.
But Daily Mail Australia can reveal this bedroom romp was comparatively tame compared to another incident that was caught on camera.
A couples massage scene that was supposed to air on Tuesday night was ‘banned’ after producers deemed it ‘too racy’.
Married At First Sight EXCLUSIVE: Channel Nine was forced to remove a racy scene involving Jessika Power and Daniel Webb – after things ‘escalated’ during a couples massage
The footage in question involved Jessika, 27, massaging Dan, 35, in their apartment – but it didn’t take long for things to ‘escalate’.
‘Nobody expected things to go as far as they did,’ said a source.
‘There were three very awkward cameramen in that room, and it started to feel like they were filming a sex tape rather than reality show.
‘Fortunately, the cameras stopped rolling before anything happened.’
Too hot for TV! A couples massage scene that was supposed to air on Tuesday night was ‘banned’ after producers deemed it ‘too racy’. Pictured: Jessika and Dan
It comes after a former television executive told Daily Mail Australia that Channel Nine could be ‘in trouble’ over Monday’s bedroom scene.
Rob McKnight, who worked for Nine’s News and Current Affairs department between 2008 and 2013, believes producers went ‘too far’ by showing Daniel crawling half-naked into bed with Jessika.
McKnight, the editor of industry website TV Blackbox, said: ‘I think Channel Nine might be in trouble with this one. To me, the scene was certainly confronting for a PG timeslot and I wouldn’t want my kids watching it.’
‘To me, the scene was certainly confronting’: It comes after a former television executive told Daily Mail Australia that Channel Nine could be ‘in trouble’ over Monday’s bedroom scene
‘While the couple didn’t actually engage in sex on screen, they were on top of each other in a very sexual way’, he added.
According to the Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice, ‘depictions of and verbal reference to sexual activity must be restrained’, ‘mild in impact’ and ‘remain suitable for children to watch with supervision’.
Reflecting on these guidelines, McKnight told Daily Mail Australia: ‘Was this scene suitable for children? I wouldn’t think so.
‘The couple were in a sexual position no doubt, but weren’t actually doing anything, so it will be interesting to see what ACMA [the Australian Communications and Media Authority] makes of it.
‘Nine will argue that it was at the end of the program when kids are not likely to be watching, but the fact is the show still sits in a PG time slot.’
Backlash: Daily Mail Australia exclusively revealed on Tuesday that the Australian media watchdog has been flooded with complaints following recent episodes of MAFS
Daily Mail Australia exclusively revealed on Tuesday that ACMA has been flooded with complaints following recent episodes of Married At First Sight.
In a statement this week, a spokesperson for the media watchdog confirmed that all complaints had been forwarded on to the ‘licensee for consideration’.
Meanwhile, a Change.org petition calling for MAFS to be ‘banned from television’ is gaining momentum, having reached more than 20,000 signatures since Sunday.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Channel Nine for comment.
Saucy! Jessika and Dan, who began their relationship while still ‘married’ to other people, have spoken openly about their active sex life on the show