Age of Attraction Stars Reveal Truth About Casting Process

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Warning: This story contains spoilers from the Age of Attraction finale.

Love knows no bounds—age or otherwise—and the Age of Attraction cast knows that better than anyone.

After all, many of the couples on the show—including Derrick Fleming and Pfeifer Hill, Theresa Demaria and John Merrill, Libby Vodicka and Andrew Wheeler, and Logan Goodrid and Vanessa Drozda—decided to commit to each other in the March 25 finale, despite having an age gap in their relationship.

But the cast members—who ranged in age from 22 to 60—weren’t always certain that they’d find love in such an unconventional way.

In fact, Derrick, 43, admitted that he was apprehensive about joining the Netflix reality show since he considers himself a “private person.”

“Everyone was like, ‘What are you doing? You're going to go on a Netflix show? Your Instagram is private. You realize what's going to change?’” he told People of his friends and family’s reaction. “But it wasn't really negative. It was just like, ‘You think you can go through the whole process?’”

Leah Woolfolk—a 41-year-old flight attendant who paired up with Chris Dahlan, 26, but was dumped in the finale, despite her desire to keep dating—felt similarly about exposing her personal life and “being vulnerable on camera.”

“Usually I live in my relationships—I'm usually private. I'm not exposing everything,” she said. “The thing I was most excited about was hopefully finding my person.”

Meanwhile, Andrew, 38, said his loved ones had a different concern about the show.

“My mom thought it was a scam,” he admitted. “She said, ‘We looked into it. Is there any paperwork or anything like that?’ I'm like, ‘Mom, it's not a scam.’”

For Theresa, 54, her hesitation was based around the timing—particularly as it related to her family’s lives—and putting her three adult kids “in the public eye when they didn't necessarily ask to be in that situation.”

“My biggest situation was, my youngest kid had just graduated college, and I literally went straight from that to the show,” she shared. “I really hadn't fully digested that chapter ending and then this new chapter that I was set out for starting.”

However, not everyone’s journey to Age of Attraction was surrounded with skepticism.

Chris felt the process wouldn’t be too farfetched to those who knew him, explaining to People, “All of us joined the show for a reason, because there is some type of openness or history there. For the most part, I think the people around us were going to be supportive of that.”

“But at the same time, it was like, ‘Well, how old are you willing to go?’ I think that was the funniest reaction,” he continued. “It was like, ‘Dude, what are you doing? You’re 26, don't go too old.’ But that's pretty much it. It was funny.”

John, 27, said his inner circle was fully supportive, which made his 27-year age gap with Theresa less surprising.

“I've got a great circle around me, and I think that shows on the show,” he explained. “I think that's why I was so level-headed throughout all the tumultuous times. My support circle was like, ‘Go for it.’”

Logan, 29, had a similar mindset, noting that his friends and family weren’t phased by him dating someone with an age difference.

“At first it was called Ageless Dating, I think,” he said of the series. “So, people were like, ‘So are you going to just be dating…’ and fill in the blanks, whatever stereotypes there are. I was just like, ‘Yeah, whatever.’ But the people that are really close to me were very supportive. I don't think anybody really batted an eye because I have dated older and—not too much—younger.”

And as it turned out, Logan was the only person to walk away from the series with a fiancée after he popped the question to Vanessa, 49, during the finale, despite their 20-year age gap.

"I ran every scenario of what could happen when I was coming here, but the one scenario I didn't think of was finding the love of my life," Vanessa said in the episode after accepting his proposal. "I came into this experience with a complete open mind, and I'm really super happy with how it ended."

For more about the other couples and where they stand after the Age of Attraction finale, keep reading…

Derrick Fleming & Pfeifer Hill: Dating

Despite their 20-year age gap, Pfeifer ultimately decided to "sacrifice" and move from Seattle to Dallas to try to make it work with the dad-of-two.

"I'm the luckiest girl in the whole world to have found you here. Many people spend their whole lives looking for what we found here," she told him at the Commitment Ceremony. "If I were to leave here without you, I may regret it for the rest of my life."

Theresa Demaria & John Merrill: Dating

After reading a letter of approval from her three adult kids, Theresa felt it was worth it to battle any judgement that would come from her being double his age (54 to his 27) at the Commitment Ceremony, and they decided to give their love a shot.

"It makes me feel a lot more confident and happy to know that they wrote that to you. I had no idea what it said. And so, I don't want to walk away," she told him, adding in a confessional, "It's the connection that counts—not the candles on the cake."

Vanessa Drozda & Logan Goodrid: Engaged

Though Vanessa was all-in, saying she wanted to bring him "into my world," Logan was hesitant about dating someone 20 years older, expressing, "maybe I'm not the man for you."

Explaining that he was questioning whether their romance was "toxic" or "healthy," he told her on Commitment Day, "I need the promise ring back."

But after they shed the rings, Logan ultimately was ready to commit to her and shockingly got down on one knee.

"It's been a crazy roller coaster of a ride, but I'm not getting off anytime soon. I love the s--t out of you," he said. "You're someone who deserves everything, and someone who deserves the Kobe ring."

He presented her with an engagement ring and asked, "Do you want to continue this journey and do life together?" to which she said yes, marking her fifth time being engaged.

Leah Woolfolk & Chris Dahlan: Broke Up

Chris—who is 15 years younger than Leah—decided to walk away after feeling suffocated by her always wanting to spend time with him.

"We've talked about our differences, and we laid out what we want out of a partner from day one. I think we both want to have a family. I think we both want to settle down. I think maybe we want it at different paces," he explained. "I do think that the age difference did cause an unnecessary pressure on both of us and put us in a situation where I, for the first time in my life, I felt like it was hard for me to be myself."

As he put it, "That's why ultimately, I feel that this partnership is not right."

So, how did Leah react to the breakup?

"I've always want to be chosen, but I wasn't going to beg someone to choose me. I also can't turn a boy into a man either," she said in a confessional. "I was hoping to find my love here at the retreat, but I didn't. Overall, I think I've just learned who I am, and I'm a very strong, intelligent, beautiful woman and my future partner will be happy to be with me."

Libby Vodicka & Andrew Wheeler: Dating

Though he expressed concerns that he was stopping Libby from living it up in her 20s, she told Andrew, who is 16 years her senior, "I really feel like you'd only be an addition to my life."

"I feel like it's finally my turn, like this might actually be my rom com happy ending," the dad-of-two told her. "I know, I'm so cheesy. I've been thinking a lot about what happens after this. And I don't know what your generation calls it these days—hard launch, soft launch, probably something way cooler than what I'm about to say—but I would really love to leave here with you as my girlfriend."

Libby agreed, with the pair making plans for her to go to Baltimore to meet his daughters.

Jorge Sanchez & Vanelle Fenmou: Broke Up

The couple—who had the biggest age gap of the cast, with him being 33 years older—didn't make it to Commitment Day, splitting up while living together over disagreements about Vanelle's celibacy and Jorge's confrontation with a stranger on the street.

However, she noted, “I don’t necessarily think it has anything to do with his age.”

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