Season 5 'Love Is Blind' Contestant Sues Production Company for Sexual Assault

The Gist:

• Love Is Blind Season 5 contestant Tran Dang is suing over claims of assault, false imprisonment, and negligence.
• Tran and former fiancé Thomas Smith became engaged in the pods before the alleged incident.
• She and Thomas do not appear in any Season 5 episodes.

The Netflix series Love Is Blind is about finding love between young men and women through an emotional connection rather than physical. Unfortunately, that is not the case for one couple, and the former bride-to-be is now claiming she was sexually assaulted in Mexico.

Season 5 contestant Tran Dang is suing Kinetic Content and Delirium TV production companies for assault, false imprisonment, and negligence, claiming she was sexually assaulted by ex-fiancé Thomas Smith in Mexico. She also claims that producers did not step in to help her after first made the complaints.

As of this publication, Tran and Thomas have not directly spoken to the media about this matter, but here's what we know.

Tran's complaint is outlined in specific documents that are, quite frankly, shocking. Fans probably already know that Tran is not featured on the show, nor does her promotional photo appear on Netflix.

Tran's social media is also a mystery, and it appears that she may not be on Instagram or Facebook, or is keeping her profiles private.

However, does Love Is Blind have photos and video Tran would need to prove her allegations, which are specified in the documents?

"Smith, and without Ms. Dang’s consent, forcefully groped her, exposed himself in the nude, and repeatedly made sexual contact over her express objections," the complaint states. "Because of [Kinetic Content and Delirium TV's] 24-hour surveillance of cast members, most, if not all, of these traumatic acts were likely captured on film."

She also claimed she spoke to an assistant producer about the incidents, without resolution.

According to the filing, Tran was, "baffled that no one had intervened to stop the harassment," and that the producer, "gaslighted her, implying that she was at fault for what had happened with Thomas Smith by not communicating effectively, or somehow not taking the 'relationship' seriously."

Show creator Chris Coelen quickly responded to the lawsuit, denying all wrongdoing.

Chris told People that while he supports sexual assault victims coming forward, producers were, "never told that she felt unsafe or experienced any of the allegations that she made."

"If anybody ever came to us and said they felt unsafe in any way, we would immediately remove them from the experiment and talk to them, and try to get to the bottom of it," he added.

Chris also told the publications that Tran's claims of false imprisonment were "preposterous," and that participants always have options to leave the show.

Kinetic Content and Delirium TV are also denying these accusations, saying that she "never informed the producers of any alleged wrongdoing," and that she "continued in the experiment for weeks after the time her lawyers now claim an incident occurred."

Meanwhile, this is not the first time Love Is Blind found itself in hot water. An Insider report from April 18, 2023 states that former contestant Briana Holmes quit the shows after experiencing health issues from "20-hour filming days, coupled with the pressure to get engaged to someone sight unseen in under two weeks."

"It's a lot," Brianna said. "None of it was scripted. Everything you see is real. These are people's real lives and real emotions."