‘Married at First Sight’: Olivia and Brett Argue Bitterly Over Sex and Sarcasm
Olivia Cornu and Brett Lindsey seemed like they might be a good match at first on Lifetime’s Married at First Sight season 11 in New Orleans. But things quickly took a turn for the worse when Brett, a 35-year-old systems administrator, actually flirted with other women at his bachelor party and bragged about previous women he’d dated.
Brett and Olivia, a 30-year-old nurse practitioner, also clashed about key issues—like finances, the possibility of future children, and even Brett’s house.
On the Sept. 23 episode of Married at First Sight, “Let’s Talk About Sex, Baby,” the struggling couple met with Dr. Viviana Coles to discuss their sex life and other ongoing issues. But Brett’s sarcastic responses and irreverent asides during the counseling session led Olivia to confront him about his commitment to the process (or lack thereof).
Brett and Olivia didn’t agree on key aspects of their future
During their counseling session with Viviana, Olivia and Brett discussed key issues like their living situation, kids, and sex.
Olivia’s long hours as a nurse practitioner made it difficult for her to consider commuting from Brett’s home. And because she was renting, while he already owned his home, she said it made the decision more difficult.
Brett began to joke about Olivia’s comments about home ownership, quipping, “Oh, I’m so irresponsible.” Rolling his eyes, he added, “Stupid equity, what was I thinking?”
Brett’s wife was visibly irritated by Brett’s jokes during their serious dialogue about their future.
Even Viviana started to get annoyed by Brett’s flippant attitude. The Married at First Sight expert turned to Brett, asking, “Is that what you mean?” and admonishing him that it “wasn’t the time for sarcasm.”
As for kids, the couple wasn’t aligned on that issue either. Brett said he “absolutely” wanted kids, while Olivia would only “consider it.” But considering kids wasn’t good enough for Brett.
“I think he takes my ‘consider’ as an absolute no,” Olivia lamented.
As for the Married at First Sight couple’s sex life, they admitted that was nonexistent as well.
Brett complained about Olivia’s reticence toward physical touch, claiming, “There’s some kind of weird mental block she has about physical touch, and she won’t even sit next to me half the time…Not once has she ever initiated a touch between us. Not once.”
Olivia told Viviana that she wanted sex to be something more meaningful—and she and Brett just weren’t at that point yet.
“I want there to be more feelings involved before that just happens,” the Married at First Sight star said sadly, noting that she’d want “more sincerity” from her husband before she could feel comfortable having sex with him.
Olivia confronted Brett about his ‘sarcastic’ attitude during serious conversations
Over lunch after their awkward counseling session, Olivia told Brett she had something she wanted him to “work on”: how he looked at her during important discussions. The Married at First Sight star complained that Brett often made uncomfortable jokes or appeared “sarcastic,” even during crucial conversations about serious or sensitive subjects.
“Sometimes I’d look over just to see what you were gonna answer, and you were just kind of looking at me sarcastically,” Olivia told a stone-faced Brett. “I know you’re a sarcastic person, but it bothers me a little bit. Because it makes me feel like, in that moment, you’re not taking it seriously.”
The 30-year-old added that Brett’s attitude sometimes seemed condescending, as if he thought she was “dumb.”
For his part, Brett didn’t accept Olivia’s critiques at all. Claiming he was simply trying to inject levity and lightheartedness into serious conversations, the Married at First Sight star argued that he’d done nothing out of line.
“I didn’t know I looked sarcastic,” he said testily. “I didn’t know that was a thing at all, in fact.”
The ‘Married at First Sight’ couple didn’t reach any sort of resolution
As the couple’s argument continued, Olivia grew increasingly impatient. She told Lifetime producers that she didn’t feel heard or understood by Brett—and that his attitude sometimes made her feel belittled.
Brett and Olivia also argued about his sincerity in terms of their marriage. While Brett acted sweet to his wife in front of the Married at First Sight experts, Olivia claimed he didn’t say things like that to her in private. She wondered if he was just putting on a show for the cameras. Brett denied her claims, but he didn’t seem to be ready to bridge the gap between them, either.
Finally, Olivia asked Brett straightforwardly, “Do you want to be married to me?”
Brett told his wife that he did, but he seemed turned off by the question itself. He even accused her of being “insecure.”
The Married at First Sight couple seemed to connect somewhat later in the episode during a cocktail-making class. But afterward, when Olivia asked Brett if he felt they’d achieved a “resolution” to their problems in their earlier argument, his response was less than confident.
“There is no resolution to a problem of perception,” he responded evasively, seeming to shut down.
Olivia’s face fell in reply, and the pair ended the episode in a state of unrest and turmoil.
