The Viall Files – Francesca Farago: Likable Villain
After watching approximately 8.667 hours of “Perfect Match” to review for CommRadio and talking about it with our esteemed members, we all agreed that Francesca Farago was the villain in our story.
But is she really?
Francesca had recorded an episode on Nick Viall’s podcast, “The Viall Files,” and since I was so invested in the series anyways, I knew I had to listen in to discover the truth.
Here are my takeaways.
Francesca admits that she wanted to be the “likable villain” of the show and that people would perceive her “well,” but the production of the show displayed her in a different way.
She and Nick went over her iconic moments on the show. Without further ado, here we go.
The Francesca/Savannah Fight
Francesca and Savannah Palacio had the epic verbal spat on episode three of the show, after Savannah “makes a pass” at Dom, who Francesca was in a relationship with at the time.
Iconic lines come from that fight, like Savannah’s “Am I not entitled to have feelings for multiple people in the house?” and Francesca’s “I think I need a mop to pick your ******* dignity off the floor,” and it was the first time viewers saw Francesca in her self-proclaimed villain era.
Francesca says she felt “personally bullied” on the show by Savannah because she had a boyfriend during filming, so she had to go home anyways. In her five-shots-of-tequila state of mind, it looked like she won the fight, but Francesca said she felt like she had no real argument.
Nick thought this was a “high school confrontation” especially when Francesca says that she and her friends will hate Savannah if she stays on the show.
The Dom/Francesca Relationship
Well, Francesca starts it off by saying he had a “nice crying face,” so that sort-of counts as a compliment.
“I love when people are obsessed with me,” says our ever-relatable queen, who notes that Dom went full-in future on the relationship.
She also didn’t think she would bring Damian in for herself or into the house at all, but it was a real last-minute decision.
She also said that she and Dom are good friends now, but they never had a romantic spark. It happens.
The Damian/Francesca Relationship
First, Francesca notes that production lied to the cast: originally, the girls and guys were supposed to stay separate in the show, but then ended up matching and sleeping in the same bed.
It makes sense; no one wants to spend a night with an absolute stranger, and it’s such an important concern to bring up.
She said she “bawled” after choosing Damian on the date, but production never showed it. According to Francesca, it was more crying for relief because she knew she was comfortable enough with him in the room.
Representation
Francesca and Abbey were the short-lived same-sex couple on the show, but Kariselle also mentioned briefly in a conversation with Joey that she is bisexual as well.
Francesca said everyone in the house was “excited” for Francesca and Abbey in the house and that she was “glad” that it happened.
The Castmates
First, it was revealed Chase had a girlfriend during filming. He would.
She called Bartise “savage” in a bad way, and Shayne “crazy” and accused him of “playing up things for the show,” which is common on reality television.
Damian is “cringey, but a good guy,” Chase is “shady” and hit her up before filming, and Joey and Kariselle were “hot and cold” the entire time.
Francesca certainly has redeeming qualities about her, and reality television is always played up to more than it actually is. In terms of understanding the “Perfect Match” lore, this was the perfect listen.
Adrianna Gallucci is a first-year student majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her, please email amg7989@psu.edu.
