‘Love Is Blind’s Zack Explains Exactly Why He Chose Irina Over Bliss in Season 4: ‘Watch Closely, You Can See’

Love Is Blind Season 4 has delivered plenty of drama. In particular, cast member Zack Goytowski has elicited strong reactions on social media for choosing Irina Solomonova, whom viewers widely disliked. In a comment on Instagram, Zack explains why he initially picked Irina as his fiancée.

[Warning: This article contains detailed spoilers from Love Is Blind Season 4 Episodes 1 through 5.]

Zack and Irina had a failed engagement

In the pods, Zack Goytowski seemed to bond with multiple women, but he was the most attracted to Irina Solomonova and Bliss Poureetezadi.

Irina and Bliss appeared to be complete opposites. While Irina was quickly labeled a “mean girl” by viewers for her conflicts with other women, Bliss showed her caring side by baking cupcakes for Zack on his birthday.

Zack eventually chose Irina, though their engagement soon went south when the two met face-to-face. Irina disregarded Zack in Mexico and even openly admitted to not being attracted to him while gushing over Paul Peden. It didn’t take long for Zack to end their relationship.

Zack explains why he initially chose Irina over Bliss in ‘Love Is Blind’ Season 4

While watching the events play out, many viewers criticized Zack for choosing Irina over Bliss. In a comment on Instagram, Zack explained his decision.

“I think if you watch closely, you can see who I loved more. Look at how I was when each relationship ended,” he said. “Do you see how devastated I was when I ended it with Bliss? I laid on the couch with a pillow over my head crying for hours.”

Zack added, “Maybe the truth is I didn’t have the courage to see if our love could overcome all obstacles. Maybe I thought there was too much in the real world that would get in the way. Maybe I thought she was a little too good for me. I wasn’t just thinking about who was best for me. I was thinking about whose family would accept me and who would actually say, ‘I do,’ at the altar. And who would be able to accept me — all of me. I definitely did make the wrong choice. But first choice doesn’t mean best choice.”

Speaking to Us Weekly, Zack reiterated he “made a mistake” with the engagement to Irina.

“I would say I made a mistake with not picking Bliss [in the first place], and I think that was the real mistake,” he shared. “I knew that when I ended it [with Irina] and was kind of dealing with that. I don’t know how much you could see of the turmoil that I was going through, but when I did end it, then my very first thing was I wanted to go and tell [producers] to bring [Bliss] back and that I had made the wrong choice. But I knew I had to live with the decision.”

Zack appears to patch things up with Bliss in later ‘Love Is Blind’ episodes

Previews for the second half of season 4 show Zack meeting with Bliss after breaking up with Irina.

The previews don’t make clear what will happen between Zack and Bliss on the show and whether they’ll date. Additionally, neither has given clues about their relationship status on social media.

To see the fate of the engaged couples, tune in to Netflix as the second half of Love Is Blind Season 4 premieres on Friday, March 31.