Netflix’s latest foray into the world of live streaming ended in disaster over the weekend as the Love is Blind live reunion ended up being effectively canceled and the streamer was even forced to issue an apology to subscribers, reports Variety.
The streamer previously confirmed plans to live stream the reunion of Love is Blind season 4 with the special event due to begin at 5 p.m. PT on Sunday, April 16. This would be Netflix’s second live-streamed show after a Chris Rock standup special was broadcast last month. That comedy event went off without a hitch, so viewers expected a similar outcome here. Unfortunately, the stream was a complete fiasco.
Netflix subscribers tuning in to watch were greeted with an error message reading “Pardon the interruption. We’re having trouble playing Netflix. Please check your internet and try again.”
Netflix subscribers tuning in to watch were greeted with an error message reading “Pardon the interruption. We’re having trouble playing Netflix. Please check your internet and try again.” And it didn’t take long for social media to be flooded with angry reality TV fans demanding an explanation. The online fury got so bad that Love is Blind co-host Vanessa Lachey took to Instagram (in a now-deleted post) to assure fans that they were “ready to roll.” Which proved to be far from true.
The streamer did acknowledge the issues via a subsequently deleted tweet that poked fun at the situation by saying “Love is … late” and advising that the live stream would begin shortly. Unfortunately, the revised time slot came and went without the broadcast issues being resolved, and it appears at this point Netflix decided that the show must go on regardless and commenced taping the reunion show even without a live viewership.
Around an hour and a half after the scheduled start time Netflix once again took to Twitter to apologize for the issues. The streamer noted that the special was currently being filmed and would be uploaded to Netflix “as soon as humanly possible.” The episode did eventually appear late on Sunday evening, but the situation undoubtedly left a bad taste in the mouth of the many fans who had taken time out of their weekend to watch.
To everyone who stayed up late, woke up early, gave up their Sunday afternoon… we are incredibly sorry that the Love is Blind Live Reunion did not turn out as we had planned. We're filming it now and we'll have it on Netflix as soon as humanly possible. Again, thank you and…April 17, 2023
Netflix has yet to comment exactly on what went wrong, but considering the episode was still filmed and uploaded on Sunday, we can safely presume it was a technical issue rather than a late-arriving cast member. Let’s just hope the streamer has resolved whatever the problem was in time for the Screen Actors Guild Awards as Netflix is due to live broadcast the ceremony in 2024.
The entirety of Love is Blind season 4 is now available to stream on Netflix, and reality TV fans should definitely make time for it as there was a lot of drama this season. In fact, our senior streaming writer notes there may have been a little too much fighting and flirting between cast members. Fortunately, the surprisingly feel-good finale turned things around. However, while it appears that love may indeed be blind, it’s most definitely not broadcast live.
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