Samantha Armytage has signed a massive two-year deal with Farmer Wants A Wife with Channel Seven continuing to make Natalie Gruzlewski her understudy.
The former Sunrise host replaced Natalie, 47, as host of the dating show last year, with Natalie instead appearing in a more 'scaled-back' role over the past two series.
Natalie had become a firm fan favourite helming the first eight seasons of the reality TV show from 2007 until 2012, before returning in 2020.
Amid the hosting shake-up, it has been claimed that Samantha, 47, has signed a new contract with Channel Seven, bagging herself another two years on the show.
It has been alleged that Natalie will instead continue in an 'understudy' role alongside Samantha, after she only briefly featured on the show's 2024 series.
A source told Daily Mail Australia: 'This new contract with Channel Seven marks a new era for her with the network.'
'They had been using her on Farmer to burn her old Sunrise contract but with Sam and the network being happy with the role in Farmer Wants a Wife this is a renegotiation some said would never come.'
'With the show flying high it was a great time to renegotiate and Samantha is looking forward to getting back out into regional Australia and making new love stories,' they added.
The source insisted there won't be any hosting changes to Farmer Wants A Wife next year, despite many disgruntled fans calling for Natalie's return to the centre stage.
They added that the format will stay the same for the 2025 series, after fans also complained it was becoming like Married At First Sight with its high-drama season.
'There is no way the network will make any changes to the format next year. The numbers are up and if anything audiences can expect next year to be even more dramatic,' the source claimed.
'It is clear that wider audiences love the drama and the network will always chase the ratings.'
'Channel Seven is already doubling down on Farmer Wants a Wife drama with the upcoming Honeymoon Island.
'The new reality show makes the drama on Farmer look wholesome. So if those fans are upset now then they should hold onto their hats.'
The 2024 series of Farmer Wants A Wife was arguably the most dramatic, and saw fan favourite Farmer Bert walking away solo after deciding he wasn't ready for a relationship.
However, it was later claimed that he left the series because of all the 'drama he had been pushed into creating on the show'.
'He was done being a puppet for the producers on his farm who continued to push him and the ladies into creating drama,' an insider told Yahoo Lifestyle.
'Farmer Bert was really sweet and it was sad to see him being treated like a prop.'
Despite the changes, industry insiders are tipping that Farmer Wants A Wife will most likely eclipse the other programming scheduled in the back end of 2024.
Farmer Wants A Wife reportedly increased by 16 per cent when Samantha joined the team in 2023 and it has become Channel Seven's highest-rated reality TV series.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Channel Seven for comment.
Samantha joined the dating show as a 'guest host', but her minor role has since been expanded, with Natalie is 'scaling back' her duties.
After eight years as the show's main host, Natalie now only makes brief appearances on the show as part of a segment called Nat's Getaway.
Her much smaller role just sees her visit the show to announce the exciting trips the budding couples will go on in a bid to explore their romantic connections.
Natalie said of her role: 'It's so special to help people find love, especially for the farmers and women who have suffered through heartbreak or found the dating world difficult to navigate.'
A Seven executive previously told TV Tonight that Samantha and Natalie had effectively 'flipped roles'.
Meanwhile, New Idea claimed the shake-up ruffled Natalie's feathers after being the face of the show for years.
'No one saw this coming, least of all Nat. She didn't know the full extent of the role changes until recently - it was a bolt out of the blue!' a source told the publication.
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMihgFodHRwczovL3d3dy5kYWlseW1haWwuY28udWsvdHZzaG93Yml6L2FydGljbGUtMTM0NTQ4MjUvU2FtYW50aGEtQXJteXRhZ2Utc2lnbnMtbWFzc2l2ZS1GV0FXLWRlYWwtQ2hhbm5lbC1TZXZlbi1OYXRhbGllLUdydXpsZXdza2kuaHRtbNIBigFodHRwczovL3d3dy5kYWlseW1haWwuY28udWsvdHZzaG93Yml6L2FydGljbGUtMTM0NTQ4MjUvYW1wL1NhbWFudGhhLUFybXl0YWdlLXNpZ25zLW1hc3NpdmUtRldBVy1kZWFsLUNoYW5uZWwtU2V2ZW4tTmF0YWxpZS1HcnV6bGV3c2tpLmh0bWw?oc=5
2024-05-26 07:24:47Z
CBMihgFodHRwczovL3d3dy5kYWlseW1haWwuY28udWsvdHZzaG93Yml6L2FydGljbGUtMTM0NTQ4MjUvU2FtYW50aGEtQXJteXRhZ2Utc2lnbnMtbWFzc2l2ZS1GV0FXLWRlYWwtQ2hhbm5lbC1TZXZlbi1OYXRhbGllLUdydXpsZXdza2kuaHRtbNIBigFodHRwczovL3d3dy5kYWlseW1haWwuY28udWsvdHZzaG93Yml6L2FydGljbGUtMTM0NTQ4MjUvYW1wL1NhbWFudGhhLUFybXl0YWdlLXNpZ25zLW1hc3NpdmUtRldBVy1kZWFsLUNoYW5uZWwtU2V2ZW4tTmF0YWxpZS1HcnV6bGV3c2tpLmh0bWw
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