Married at First Sight star Jonathan Francetic and former show expert Dr. Jessica Griffin are making wedding-planning progress, as they've already set a date and booked a venue!
ADVERTISEMENT
"We have [set a date]. But we've decided not to share the date," Jonathan told Monsters & Critics in a recent interview.
RELATED: 'MARRIED AT FIRST SIGHT' COUPLES NOW: WHAT COUPLES ARE STILL TOGETHER? WHO BROKE UP? WHERE ARE THEY NOW? (PHOTOS)
Jonathan did reveal, however, he will marry Jessica at least a year from now and their wedding will take place at Ventosa Vineyards in New York, according to the website.
Ventosa Vineyards is a beautiful winery located along the shore of Seneca Lake in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York. Comprised of eleven long and narrow lakes that were created by glaciers, the Finger Lakes region is famous for its many wineries.
ADVERTISEMENT
According to its website, Ventosa Vineyards specializes in vintage dry red wines and its buildings and grounds are designed in a Tuscan style similar to what visitors would see in the Tuscany region of Italy.
Jonathan and Jessica live in Massachusetts but enjoy taking road trips around New England and New York and reportedly fell in love with the winery during a previous visit.
Jonathan and Jessica went public with their relationship in August 2018, and then Jonathan proposed marriage in April at the Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona.
In late April, Jonathan took to Instagram to drop some details about his upcoming wedding.
At the time, the couple had narrowed down their venue to a vineyard in either the Finger Lakes area or the Eastern Townships region of the Canadian province of Quebec.
ADVERTISEMENT
"So! @dr.jessicagriffin and I have come to a decision -- because we go to wineries on almost every trip, we should have the wedding at a vineyard," he wrote.
RELATED: '90 DAY FIANCE' COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER? WHO HAS SPLIT? WHERE ARE THEY NOW? (PHOTOS)
Jessica and Jonathan met on Season 6 of Married at First Sight, on which Jonathan wed a total stranger, Molly Duff, and Jessica served as one of the show's matchmakers and relationship experts.
The MAFS season married singles who lived in the Boston, MA area and began filming in late Summer 2017. Its finale aired on Lifetime in April 2018.
After Jonathan and Molly got a divorce, Jonathan and Jessica sparked up a romance and ultimately faced backlash and scrutiny since, in addition to helping match them, Jessica had also served as a relationship counselor to Jonathan and his then-wife Molly during Married at First Sight's sixth season.
ADVERTISEMENT
Jessica, a licensed psychologist, is an associate professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester, MA, which is about 45 minutes west of Boston. Originally from Ohio, she has three children from a previous marriage.
While Jessica had previously appeared on Seven Year Switch, another relationship show that also aired on Lifetime and was produced by MAFS's Kinetic Content production company, Married at First Sight's sixth season was her first season as a member of the show's expert panel.
After news of their relationship emerged last year, critics accused Jonathan and Jessica of engaging in an "inappropriate" romance that reflected poorly on Jessica's professionalism and credibility.
Jessica, however, has insisted she did not have an actual client/therapist or doctor/patient relationship with Jonathan at any point during production and outside companies are hired to conduct the psychological evaluations of Married at First Sight's cast members.
Jessica and her new fiance have defended their relationship repeatedly.
ADVERTISEMENT
Jonathan and Jessica's backstory was further complicated by the fact that Married at First Sight's sixth season had also shown Jessica being unusually confrontational with Molly when she met with Jonathan and Molly after they had a blow-out fight that ended up being the end of their marriage.
"I understand you don't like my honesty, but I don't like your lies," Jessica told Molly, saying she didn't believe Molly's claims that the couple's fight had been the first time she had spoken to Jonathan in the belligerent manner she was shown in a video Jonathan had recorded.
Jonathan told Monsters & Critics that he actually wasn't a fan of Jessica when the pair was filming Season 6 of Married at First Sight.
RELATED LINK: 'DANCING WITH THE STARS' PROS AND THEIR SIGNIFICANT OTHERS: WHO'S DATING OR MARRIED TO WHOM!? (PHOTOS)
Jonathan insisted they had no chemistry at the time, and he even recalled himself saying at one point, "I hope I never see that woman again!"
Jonathan claimed in his interview he and Jessica only met a couple of times during the show and they only formed a bond after filming wrapped.
"Once I got to know her, I realized how great she was and fell in love. That's why I locked that down!" he said.
Jonathan and Jessica got engaged shortly after People reported Jessica was leaving her role as a relationship expert on Married at First Sight after appearing on three seasons of the Lifetime reality series, as well as its Married at First Sight: Honeymoon Island spinoff.
During his interview with Monsters & Critics, Jonathan also revealed he had originally been cast for Married at First Sight: Honeymoon Island, however he ended not participating because he and Jessica had begun dating by the time the MAFS spinoff began filming.
Married at First Sight: Honeymoon Island gave participants and unmatched candidates from previous Married at First Sight seasons another shot to find love and was filmed in St. Lucia in August 2018.
The eight-episode MAFS spinoff aired on Lifetime in late 2018, however it was not renewed for a second season.
ADVERTISEMENT
RELATED: 'MARRIED AT FIRST SIGHT' STAR AMBER BOWLES: I WAS SHOCKED MATT GWYNNE DIDN'T END OUR MARRIAGE ON RECOMMITMENT DAY
Jessica was replaced by Dr. Viviana Coles, a psychotherapist, on Season 9 of Married at First Sight, which just aired its reunion special last month.
Season 9 of Married at First Sight ended with Elizabeth Bice and Jamie Thompson opting to remain married on "Decision Day," as well as Deonna McNeill and Gregory Okotie.
Two couples, however, chose to get a divorce: Amber Bowles and Matthew Gwynne in addition to Iris Caldwell and Keith Manley.
Jonathan told Monsters & Critics he'd advise divorced MAFS couples to remain vulnerable and not hold onto grudges or "carry baggage" into their next relationship.
The tenth season of Married at First Sight will premiere January 1 on Lifetime and feature couples who live in the Washington, D.C area.
The series has also been picked up for an eleventh edition, which will also air next year and likely be filmed in New Orleans, LA, based on a recent casting call.
RELATED: 'MARRIED AT FIRST SIGHT' COUPLES NOW: WHAT COUPLES ARE STILL TOGETHER? WHO BROKE UP? (PHOTOS)
Interested in more Married at First Sight news? Join our Married at First Sight Facebook Group!