In a raw and vulnerable moment during Wednesday night's episode of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!, Matt Zukowski was overcome with emotion, breaking down in tears as he confessed to fellow contestant Rachel Hunter about the profound impact of being separated from his mother.
A Heartfelt Admission on National Television
The 30-year-old Love Island Australia star and influencer became visibly distressed while discussing his mother, Janine, with Hunter. "Missing Mum is probably the thing that's killing me most," Matt admitted, his voice trembling. "I call her if I have some sort of issue. I call her and she talks me off a ledge, calms me down as mums do. It's hard not being able to do that."
He continued, explaining the emotional weight of the situation: "I know what she would say, but I know that will make me cry though. It will make me too sad." The scene then cut to Matt covering his face with his hand as he wept openly, a powerful display of vulnerability rarely seen on the gruelling Channel Ten reality series.
Confronting Producers About His Emotional State
In a subsequent confessional, Matt directly addressed the show's producers, his voice thick with emotion. "Has my mum reached out to you?" he asked tearfully. "Whenever I have a hard time I just call my mum. She talks me off the ledge and I feel better. She got me through the last year of everything." This poignant admission highlighted the significant toll his isolation from his maternal support system was taking on his overall well-being within the demanding jungle environment.
Navigating a High-Profile Divorce and New Romance
Matt's emotional turmoil comes amidst a period of significant personal change. Earlier this month, he publicly addressed his ex-wife Tammy Hembrow's new romance with AFL star Bailey Smith. Matt and Tammy announced the end of their marriage in June 2025, after being wed for just seven months.
Appearing on The Kyle and Jackie O Show, Matt shared his reaction to seeing Tammy, 31, move on so swiftly, with the pair being photographed kissing in August. "I don't think jealousy is the right word," he began. "I was doing my own healing process, and when I saw that, I was like, 'Oh, okay.' No one likes to see the person they used to love and be married to hooking up with someone else. That's a knife to anyone's chest, man."
Reflecting on a Short-Lived Marriage
The influencer revealed there has been no contact with Tammy since their divorce announcement. "I haven't spoken to her since we announced we were divorced. So, no contact at all," he stated. Reflecting on their relationship, which progressed rapidly from a three-month engagement in December 2023 to a wedding in November 2024, Matt offered a candid assessment: "I don't think I'm the first person in history to think that a marriage is going to fix the problems in a relationship. And like I said, it didn't. It just progressively got worse."
Meanwhile, Bailey Smith, the Geelong Cats star linked to Tammy, appeared on the Today show to insist the pair were "just friends," describing Tammy as an older, wiser mentor figure in his life.
The Gruelling Reality TV Context
Matt is currently competing on the challenging I'm A Celebrity series alongside a roster of notable personalities, including international model Rachel Hunter, The Brady Bunch star Barry Williams, and Married At First Sight veteran Cyrell Paule. The intense environment of the show, designed to test contestants' physical and mental fortitude, appears to have amplified Matt's feelings of homesickness and emotional strain, culminating in his tearful breakdown over missing his mother's comforting presence during a difficult chapter in his personal life.
