‘Love & Marriage: Huntsville’: Cast Reveals Failed Pact They Made Before Filming Season 1
Since the start of the OWN reality series Love & Marriage: Huntsville, the marital drama between Melody Shari (formerly Holt) and Martell Holt took front and center. The former couple’s 14-year marriage ended due to Martell’s lengthy affair and eventual child conceived out of the marriage. But their friendships with the other two couples on the cast also suffered, and according to the Scotts, they were blindsided by the fact the Holts discussing their infidelity issues on the show in Season 1.
Melody Shari learned of Martell Holt’s continued affair a week before shooting the pilot episode
During a behind-the-scenes episode of the show, executive producer Carlos King revealed that a week before shooting the pilot, he received a call from Melody explaining that she’d discovered Martell was still being unfaithful. Melody disclosed that she’d learned of Martell’s affair two years prior, but he insisted he cut it off. As a result, Melody didn’t want to move forward with shooting the show.
“I said, ‘I’m not doing the show, I’m not.’” Melody explained in the episode. “It was very devastating to me because I thought that infidelity was something we’d gone through, had gotten done and over, and we’re good.”
But King didn’t want to give up as they were so close to getting a green light on the show. “We prayed about it and I said to Melody, ‘Shoot the pilot, be your authentic self. If the show gets picked up, then we will figure out how we are representing the authenticity of you and Martell and I will hold your hand throughout this entire process,’” King said, and Melody agreed.
Maurice and Kimmie Scott say they vowed never to speak on the Holts’ marital infidelity
In episode 1 of the show, Melody hints at Martell cheating in their marriage. At a dinner scene with the two Scott couples, she poses the question about whether or not there is a such thing as respectful cheating that the other couples seemingly are afraid to answer. As it turns out, it’s because of a pact all couples made prior to filming.
“It actually was a pact, and it wasn’t just a pact between the guys, it was a pack between the six of us. Because we knew about all of this stuff before the show started,” Maurice Scott revealed on an episode of the Reality With the King podcast. “And it was shocking to us, if you saw my face when we were all sitting around the dining room, so we’re talking about this, and I still didn’t know it was going to go full-tilt.”
His wife Kimmie agreed, adding: “It was all six of us. We all six, because we were friends, and we did know stuff about each other. We all six sat down, and full transparency, said, ‘What are things y’all don’t want to talk about? Whatever you don’t want to talk about, let us know right now so we don’t accidently touch on it.’ That was one of the things that they asked.”
The couple explained that they were forced to discuss it by producers after learning that the Holts were already in talks about it. Things spiraled from there.
LaTisha Scott shared similar sentiments
Another person who corroborates the Scotts’ story is their sister-in-law, LaTisha. She revealed in her interview with DJ Richie Skye that the infidelity was something Melody and Martell insisted they not discuss on the show, and that they’d even been distant from the Holts before filming.
“Before the show, Mel and Martell and the Scotts, we were all really close. We hung out all the time – sleeping over at each other’s houses, got up in the morning and cooked breakfast, talked and everything,” she explained. “Then when the infidelity happened with Martell, which was like two years before we started filming this show, we were there for Mel through the whole process…there for her, helping her through it, talking to her, talking her out of doing crazy things.”
But LaTisha says the Holts blamed them for their marital problems. “Prior to that, we had honestly stopped talking because, at that time, she was saying that Martell blamed the guys for him stepping out. And so that within itself just put a strain in our relationship. But it was no bad blood. It was like you stop hanging out with people. It is what it is,” she said.
