The life of former 90 Day Fiance star Michael Jessen has completely imploded since his appearance on the show. His young Brazilian model wife, Juliana Custodio, has left him and is currently pregnant with her new boyfriend of less than five months. His million dollar house is tied up in foreclosure proceedings and was recently listed for sale. Michael’s ex-wife, Sara, has moved out of Michael’s home amid reports that her husband, Sean Naso, had an affair with Juliana. Also, court documents indicate that there is a custody battle brewing between Michael and Sarah over their two children, son Max and daughter Cece.
Aside from Michael’s lengthy statement just after his split from Juliana was announced, he hasn’t said too much publicly. That changed this week thanks to the release of the first video in a series by You’re So Lazy. (The full Part One video is included at the bottom of this post.) The videos feature interviews with Michael in his home as well as photos and videos from his life over the past two years.
The first installment of the series attempts to answer the question: Who is the real Michael Jessen? Here’s the intro:
If you’ve been around reality TV very much, you start to realize that there isn’t a whole lot of real about it. That was certainly true of Michael Jessen, where we didn’t really see his character come through, but actually we saw a caricature of who the show wanted to portray him as — this rich, jet-setting guy traveling the world, picking up young girls. Easy to dislike, right?
Yes, he’s had great success in his life, and it’s easy to see that on his Instagram page or in his accomplishments. However, that’s not all he is, and if you get the chance to get to know Michael as I’ve gotten the chance, you see a lot more of his character — integrity, hospitality, generosity, humility — so many good qualities.
So come with me and let’s discover: Who is Michael Jessen?
Michael says that his wealthy playboy lifestyle was overplayed on the show, and that misconception still impacts how people see him. “Even if people know that Juliana’s gone, Sarah’s gone, Sean’s gone, whatever…That’s cool. It leaves this really rich guy that’s driving around in Porsches and exotic cars, and jet setting, and clearly has all the money he needs. So, big deal if he divorces some young thing that he picked up somewhere or other, you know?”
That perception is far from reality, Michael says. He doesn’t mention it specifically, but the fact that Michael’s home is currently tied up in foreclosure proceedings after he reportedly stopped making the mortgage payments in April of 2020 seemingly confirms that the former reality star does not have a lot of money to spend on extravagant trips and cars.
He continues by addressing all the ladies out there sliding into his DMs looking for a chance to land a wealthy bachelor. “All you women around the world who are DMing me thinking you’ve got a, you know, rich man catch, easy meat here, let me tell you, the reality is a lot different than what you saw on TV.”
Michael concedes that even when he was filming that his wealthy lifestyle was “exaggerated.”
#90DayFiance Michael Jessen and Juliana Custodio confirm split with lengthy statements. Michael's was apologetic and positive — Juliana's not so much. https://t.co/2JZvpr7OMG pic.twitter.com/cQysfe70ae
— Starcasm (@starcasm) October 12, 2021
How did Michael wind up on 90 Day Fiance?
Michael reveals that he found out about 90 Day Fiance after producers approached his immigration attorney. He also reveals that he knew nothing about the show at the time, but his son Max was a big fan!
Out of nowhere I get a call from my lawyer and she says, “Listen, I don’t know this show, I know of it. [I] don’t watch it, but I got a call from a producer from 90 Day Fiance and asking if I had any interesting cases that might fit our our show and what we do, and I thought of you guys. So, here’s their contact info if you’re interested.”
Michael was just like his attorney in that he had heard of 90 Day Fiance, but he’d never seen it himself. That was not the case for his son, Max.
“It was one of his favorite shows,” Michael says. “He’d watched it a lot, and when he got wind of this, he was extremely excited.” Michael then says that Max’s fandom was a huge reason he decided to call producers.
“It was going to be hard to say no to doing the show” due to how “disappointed Max would have been,” Michael says.
#90DayFiance Pregnant Juliana Custodio reportedly cheated on Michael Jessen with his ex-wife Sarah's husband Sean late last year, and now the paternity of Juliana's baby is in question. Plus updates on Michael's foreclosure & the civil suits against Sarah. https://t.co/b61aNdR4RD pic.twitter.com/imEye6MEGR
— Starcasm (@starcasm) January 20, 2022
Michael Jessen regrets 90 Day Fiance
In the video, Michael says there were people he knew telling him not to do 90 Day Fiance. “A lot of people I talked with — and people I trust, and respect, and listen to — said ‘Don’t do it. Why would you do that? Why [would] you put your life out there, you know? What are you doing?'”
Michael clarifies that their opinion “had nothing to do with judgments about the show, the quality of it or what portrayal for better or worse, but just that, you know, in general, making that decision to be on some reality program — open up your life, you know?”
Looking back, Michael wishes he would have listened to their cautionary warnings. “In retrospect, those people were right,” he admits. “I was just so set on Juliana getting here, and that really clouded a lot of vision and judgment…It was driven by love, you know? I would have done anything.”
Would Michael be on 90 Day Fiance again if he had it to do over? “The short answer is no, I wouldn’t do the show. Of course not,” he says. “Even if nothing would have changed in terms of Julianna and I’s relationship, my relationship with their mother, our circumstances right now.”
Michael says that being a public figure multiplies his current bad situation. “It makes it so much — by a hundred times, by a thousand times what I’m going through — much more difficult and much more painful than if it weren’t public. You know, the humiliation and the shame that comes in knowing that everybody knows what the hell’s going on.”
He says that being in the public eye has resulted in other people finding things out about his personal life before he did, including Juliana announcing their split and her pregnancy on social media.
Despite clearly stating that he would not do 90 Day Fiance again if he could go back, Michael admits that if TLC had continued to film his story it would have provided some great TV.
“If cameras had just been rolling this whole time and caught the progression after our last episode, and then got the arc of [the] pandemic, and then our explosion, and Juliana leaving, Sarah leaving, Sean disappearing — wherever he is — it would have been fascinating. It would have been really fascinating. Maybe one day that story will be more fully told.”
#90DayFiance Check out Juliana Custodio in Sean Naso's "California" music video. Plus, Sean responds to the cheating scandal. https://t.co/HvhSPZizrS#ICYMI Sean is married to Michael Jessen's ex-wife Sarah and reportedly had an affair with Juliana while they all lived together. pic.twitter.com/emtB1Ax2ZX
— Starcasm (@starcasm) January 21, 2022
Michael was warned about Juliana
In addition to being warned about doing 90 Day Fiance, Michael says he had friends and acquaintances that warned him about marrying Juliana as well. “I had some close friends that knew her before they knew me, that warned me,” he says.
“Not that she had done something to somebody else like she did me, but just — I’m thinking back now, and knowing what I know now, maybe they knew some things I didn’t, and may never know. But I had some very close friends that really said, ‘I don’t think this is such a good idea with Juliana.'”
Michael confirms that he now doubts Juliana’s true intentions in regards to their relationship and marriage. “Those people and…the audience that saw the gold digger, the opportunist — you know, future heartbreaker — well, they were right.” Michael adds that the hindsight “makes it very difficult. That kills me.”
Michael concludes the video with what seems to be pre-recorded audio talking about Sarah and Sean moving in and how that contributed to his split from Juliana.
The third fatal mistake I made was allowing my ex-wife Sarah and her husband Sean to live with us. By early 2020, Sarah and Sean were having some financial struggles and were selling their house. And Sarah was diagnosed with breast cancer. And, of course, COVID struck, and by mid-march our area was in lockdown.
Juliana and I made the decision to allow Sarah and Sean to live with us. At this time, all four of us were very close. And, in fact, Juliana and Sarah consider themselves best of friends. And remember that Sarah was the officiant in our wedding.
And thinking of Max and Cece also. It seemed like a good idea to have both parents under the same roof. We thought we could be one big, happy, blended family. And, for quite a long time, we were.
But, by mid-summer of 2021, the experiment would come to an abrupt halt, and the fallout would ultimately lead to the destruction of my marriage.
I assume that Michael will be sharing additional details about what caused the abrupt halt, as well as the fallout, in the next installment of the video series. Be sure to subscribe to You’re So Lazy’s channel and turn on notifications so you don’t miss out when it drops!
Here’s the intro video for the series followed by the full video for Part One. Both videos feature exclusive clips of the family living together before the destruction, including a birthday party, Michael jamming with friends, and a going away breakfast for Juliana.
Asa Hawks is a writer and editor for Starcasm. You can contact Asa via Twitter, Facebook, or email at starcasmtips(at)yahoo.com
