Love Is Blind season 8 star Dave Bettenburg is clearly having a tough time processing fiancée Lauren O’Brien’s past “situationship” before joining the show. But is his frustration justified?
During an exclusive interview with Us Weekly, show host Vanessa Lachey shared her thoughts on the issue, emphasizing that everyone’s journey is unique.
“I think everyone’s situation is different,” Vanessa said, when asked if there’s an ideal amount of time to be single before joining the experiment. “It’s very important to not be seeing someone while you’re on the show — we’ve seen that play out or not play out so well. But there’s no right or wrong.”
Dave and Lauren got engaged in the pods, with their love story unfolding in the first batch of episodes released on February 14.
However, in the second drop of episodes on February 21, tension starts brewing between the two. Dave becomes visibly uncomfortable after learning that Lauren had casually been involved with someone just months before the show—someone he happens to have mutual friends with.
Vanessa pointed out that this type of situation isn’t unusual when people start new relationships.
“When you meet someone for the first time and find out they just got out of a relationship, then you navigate that conflict,” she explained. “We’re seeing how Lauren and Dave handled that—how what was important to him might not have been that important to her, or vice versa.”
Nick Lachey also weighed in, acknowledging that Dave felt uneasy about potentially running into mutual acquaintances.
“He felt it was gonna be a little awkward running into people that he knew,” Nick said. “But that’s part of life—it’s not a specific Love Is Blind issue.”
Lauren herself explained the situation to the Netflix cameras, recalling how she answered Dave’s question about her dating history.
“Dave was like, ‘Did you date anyone before coming on here?’ I go, ‘I was, like, talking to someone a couple of months ago, but I wouldn’t have said that I dated them,’” Lauren shared. “But Dave has mutual friends with him. I was giving [Dave] names and he’s like, ‘Oh, I know him. I see him at the pool all the time.’”
Though Dave initially claimed he wouldn’t let it affect their relationship after their romantic getaway to Honduras, he continued to struggle with the revelation.
“How do you go from seeing someone so recently to like, ‘I’m ready for marriage?’” Dave questioned. “That just seems like a huge step in between… That’s tough.”
Back home in Minneapolis—where the cast has often mentioned that the dating pool is small—Lauren’s friends tried to reassure Dave that her past fling wasn’t a serious relationship.
“We would’ve hung out with him if they were dating,” one friend insisted.
But despite these reassurances, Dave still couldn’t shake his doubts, leaving Lauren feeling “helpless” as the episodes came to a close.
With emotions running high, fans are left wondering—will Dave be able to move past this, or is it a dealbreaker for their relationship?
The first nine episodes of Love Is Blind season 8 are now streaming on Netflix. The next three episodes drop on Friday, February 28.
