Rivals star Bella MacLean is defending the show's "divisive" 16-year age gap between Taggie and Rupert. "I was so worried about what people would think," MacLean, 29, told Elle UK on Tuesday, May 5. "But Gen Z seem to love it! My girlfriends send me these really funny reels of me and Rupert on TikTok." MacLean urged viewers to keep an open mind. "Because of the way it's done, because they really loved each other at first sight, I just feel like it's a soul connection with them," she noted.