Who’s the villain when everyone’s been caught creeping? That’s the question being asked by Dr. Stacii Jae Johnson on OWN’sPut A Ring On It: Cheathab.
The new relationship series follows three couples whose relationships have all been rocked by infidelity and puts them to the test to see if marriage is the ultimate goal.
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Will Packer Warns Fans: “It’s Messy, It’s Drama.”
BOSSIP’s very own Lauryn Bassattended the Atlanta premiere of Put A Ring On It: Cheathab at Morehouse College’s Bank of America Auditorium, where media, influencers, and guests gathered for an advance screening of the first episode followed by a live Q&A with relationship expert Dr. Stacii Jae Johnson, hosted by Kenya Cabine.
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The Atlanta premiere also drew a star-studded crowd of entertainers, television personalities and influencers, including:
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Will Packer — Executive producer of Put A Ring On It: Cheathab and Atlanta Falcons co-owner (appeared via prerecorded welcome message)
Dr. Stacii Jae Johnson — Relationship expert and host of the evening’s post-screening Q&A
Monyetta Shaw-Carter — Television personality and entrepreneur
Dr. Contessa Metcalfe — Married to Medicine star
Nicci Gilbert — Brownstone singer, producer and television personality
Funky Dineva — Media personality and commentator
Ernestine Johnson Morrison — Spoken word artist, actress and author
Kiana Dancie — Comedian, actress and radio personality
Lori Hanford — The Later Daters cast member
Mike Jackson — HGTV’s Married to Real Estate
Michael Anthony — Television personality and influencer
AND MORE!
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Before the lights dimmed, executive producer and Atlanta Falcons co-owner Will Packer appeared in a prerecorded message to welcome the audience.
“Put A Ring On It: Cheathab. It’s new, and it’s a whole nother world,” Packer said. “It’s messy. It’s drama. I apologize in advance.”
The warning drew laughs from the audience, but after watching the first episode, it became clear the series offers more than reality TV chaos.
Dr. Stacii Says There Are No Villains
During the post-screening audience discussion, Dr. Stacii explained why this version of Put A Ring On It feels different from nearly every infidelity series viewers have seen before.
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“What I love is that the women in this show are also cheaters,” she told the audience. “It levels the playing field and stops the watchers from looking for the villain because they both are.”
Rather than focusing on blame, she said the series centers accountability and whether both partners are willing to do the work required to rebuild trust.
She also shared that much of the healing audiences will witness happened during hours of conversations that never made the final edit.
“We have hours of talks that you don’t see,” she said. “We spent hours building trust, and we talked about everything, which is the only way I can help.”
Although she admitted there is plenty of humor throughout the process, she believes the one-on-one coaching sessions are where the show’s biggest breakthroughs happen.
“It’s a lot of laughter, but once we get into the one-on-one, it’s groundbreaking what OWN is doing,” she said. “I really dropped some gems. I’m proud of the work I was able to do.”
When asked what surprised her most over the course of the season, Dr. Stacii said she admired every couple’s willingness to participate in such a vulnerable social experiment.
“I honor every couple on this show,” she said. “I think they are equal. It takes a lot to do this. I honor their journey.”
She did, however, admit one participant’s actions caught her off guard.
“I was shocked that Josh didn’t stand up for his relationship with Mi-Mi,” she said. “I was devastated with his behavior.”
When asked what advice she would give couples trying to maintain healthy relationships, Dr. Stacii kept her answer simple.
“Be courageous. Be honest. Tell the truth, and don’t feel like you’re protecting someone by not telling the truth.”
Dr. Stacii Explains WhyCheathabLevels The Playing Field
Following the premiere, Bass caught up with Dr. Stacii for an exclusive conversation, where she expanded on why the show’s premise stood out to her.
“You’ve never really seen two people cheating in one relationship,” she said. “It’s usually we villainize either the man or the woman, but in this relationship, in all of our couples, everyone is a cheater.”
According to Dr. Stacii, removing the obvious victim-versus-villain dynamic allows couples to confront what caused both partners to betray the relationship.
“You’re not spending a lot of time pointing the finger at the other person,” she said. “So we can really get some real work done to really see what happened in this relationship to make both people feel like they needed to make such a horrible choice.”
She added that while infidelity is painful, she doesn’t believe one mistake should permanently define someone’s character.
“A horrible choice doesn’t make them a bad person,” she said. “But a horrible choice to betray the commitment that they once had.”
