Warning! The following article discusses plotlines of the current seasons of 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After and 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way. Read at your own risk!
If there's one thing that seems to come up on 90 Day Fiancé more often than not, it's money. Finances can be a point of tension between married couples after all, so it only makes sense that couples on the show would suffer the same problems. With all the drama that has come from money in the latest seasons of 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After and The Other Way, I have to ask: wouldn't knowing if couples are paid to do the show better explain some situations?
To get the answer out of the way, there are conflicting reports on who does and doesn't get paid in the TLC franchise and its spinoffs. Radar Online has said that base pay for the main show is around $1,000 to $1,500 per episode and $2,500 to do the tell-all special.
That number is said to climb (minus Before The 90 Days which is allegedly $500 an episode) when those couples are invited to be in the spinoffs, and that pay can range between $2,000 to $7,500 an episode (via Newsweek). Other sources say no one is paid, and that the foreign participant on the K-1 visa is usually not paid.
I'm not sure what the real numbers are, but I can say that knowing would certainly explain a lot of storylines where audiences are seeing tension without an explanation. For example, the tension between Andrei Castravet and Libby Potthast Castravet in a recent episode when, according to Andrei, she flipped on her decision for him to have a job, despite Andrei citing past discussions in which they said it was better one of them stayed home to save on child care. $1,000 an episode won't make anyone rich, but between two people, that could be used for childcare and potentially leave Andrei the freedom to stay at home.
Then there's Kalani Faagata and Asuelu Pulaa, who recently had drama after Asuelu's mother and sister requested $1,000 be sent to them. Samoan culture or not, Asuelu's family has to understand he's not making bank as a part-time yogurt sample guy at the mall. Are they pushing for the $1,000 because they know how much the couple makes from the show, or because they looked up the same article online and are just assuming?
Finally, there's Deavan Clegg and Jihoon Lee, whose storyline in Season 2 is based almost entirely on money. Jihoon may deserve some criticism for his failure to find a full-time job, but these articles also allege Deavan could be getting some additional money that he never received for being on the show. If that is the case, then it certainly makes Deavan slightly less sympathetic in the situation, considering their guest house in Korea may have been funded by show money.
Couples don't speak about the pay they receive on the show, or they do and TLC edits it out. Regardless, I think being somewhat upfront about the pay would at least give 90 Day Fiancé viewers some added context that further tells the story about just how much these couples are and aren't being helped by the series. Even if it's just a small disclaimer, I think it would go a long way in explaining some storylines, and perhaps make some couples' situations on the show a bit more understandable.
Would you like to know how much 90 Day Fiancé couples make? Share all thoughts in the comments, and continue to stick with CinemaBlend for all the latest happening in television and movies.
