“Am I unhappy about it? No, I’m not unhappy about it,” Coelen continued. “I’m certainly unhappy that Deepti didn’t get the happy ending that she wanted there, but I think even talking to Deepti after the fact, she has felt she has grown tremendously through this experience as a person, and I’m really happy about that. I’m happy for her. I’m hoping that Shake will feel the same way at some point, if he doesn’t already.”

As for how somebody so polarizing could end up on the show, Coelen argues that the show is merely an accurate depiction of society.

“We certainly vet people, and we do psychological testing—we do background checks and all of that—but we want to invite a broad array of people into the pods,” he suggested. “Let’s say I thought that somebody was a jerk and a chauvinist. I am not making the decision. If you look at Shake and Deepti, Deepti chose Shake—I didn’t choose Shake for her. She chose him, and in that way, it’s very reflective of the real world.”