Olivia Plath is opening up about her future on Welcome to Plathville following her split from estranged husband Ethan Platt.
During a Thursday, December 7, Instagram Q&A, Olivia, 25, seemingly confirmed she will continue to film the TLC series despite the show’s explosive season 5 finale in which she and Ethan, 25, decided to call it quits after five years of marriage. (TLC has yet to officially renew the show for a sixth season).
“Will you still be on the show? I won’t watch anymore if you aren’t,” one fan asked the reality star, to which she simply replied, “Yes.”
Olivia’s relationship with Ethan has been a focal point of Welcome to Plathville since the show premiered in 2019. The twosome tied the knot in October 2018, despite often being at odds with Ethan’s mom, Kim Plath, over wedding plans. After their nuptials, Olivia and Ethan struggled through multiple rough paths in their relationship. They ultimately announced their break up in October.
“Ethan and I have decided to go our separate ways,” Olivia wrote via Instagram at the time. “I have ambivalent memories of us being 18 years old, innocently dreaming of forever – but the partner you choose is a reflection of the world you want to live in, and at 18 I didn’t know who I was or what kind of life I wanted to create for myself.”
She noted that the pair did have “good moments” between them, which she wanted to continue to honor, adding, “We fell in love as children and are going our separate ways as adults. Wiser, older and braver. We will be OK.”
Ethan, for his part, addressed the split via his own Instagram, sharing that they both “gave it all” they had but their marriage “just didn’t work out.”
“It seemed we were constantly pulling each other in opposite directions in life with different goals,” he explained. “I wish Olivia the best in the future ahead. I care for her deeply and always will.”
The split was later featured on the season 5 finale, which aired on Tuesday, December 5. The twosome had spent much of the season arguing over their differing beliefs on things like politics, religion and how to raise their hypothetical children.
“The faith and the world that I grew up in was a world built for men, that worked for men. And to tell me that I need to go back to a culture and a faith and a belief that told me that I was worth nothing without a husband, that in a relationship I just need to submit and say ‘yes’ and cook three meals a day and praise God and it would all be fine,” Olivia, who has been vocal about pushing back against the fundamentalist Christian traditions she was raised with, told her now-estranged husband in the episode. “I don’t think you understand the privilege you have to look at me and tell me I need to go back to that because it served you.”
Ethan, however, argued that there are different “roles” that men and women should “play” in a household. “That’s natural. That’s inherent in us,” he claimed. “And the whole thing, cooking three meals a day, that is one of the only keys to a man’s heart. When’s the last time you cooked a meal?”
The conversation ended with the pair saying they were not the right “romantic partners” for one another before a final card stated that “Olivia and Ethan have mutually decided to file for divorce.” (Neither Ethan nor Olivia have filed for divorce as of December.)
During Thursday’s Instagram Q&A, Olivia revealed that she has made the move from Minnesota to the West Coast since calling it quits with Ethan.
“I moved to Los Angeles earlier this year for a fresh start while I figured out where I wanted to put down roots,” Olivia shared when asked where she plans to live next. “It’s been a lovely 6 months in L.A. learning to surf, making new friends, enjoying the scenery and weather, etc. I needed some time to take deep breaths and figure out some internal things. Los Angeles is not a permanent decision, but I’ve always wanted to live in California and couldn’t before, so I decided to do that now while I can.”
Olivia added that she has no plans to change her last name now despite her separation from Ethan — “Sometimes I joke that I’ve f–king earned” that name, she said — but she is open to finding love again.
When a fan asked if she wanted to date again, she replied, “Yes.”
