House of Villains is a new reality series, where the most controversial alumni from popular reality TV shows compete with one another for a $200,000 cash prize. Among the cast is Anfisa Arkhipchenko, forever remembered by 90 Day Fiancé viewers as the reality franchise’s most reprehensible, outrageous – and there’s no other way to put it, villainous – figure to date.
Who is Anfisa Arkhipchenko, and why did she become 90 Day Fiancé’s most infamous cast member?
Anfisa Arkhipchenko, a Russian native now living in the United States, rose to prominence on the fourth season of 90 Day Fiancé, alongside then-fiancé (and later husband) Jorge Nava. After meeting online, Anfisa moved to the U.S. after her relationship with Jorge became serious, with an engagement allowing Anfisa to temporarily reside in the country under a K-1 visa, commonly known as the fiancé visa.
From the start of their time on the show, viewers took a dislike to Anfisa, who frequently demanded money from Jorge to continue their relationship. While Jorge did tell some white lies about his personal wealth to entice Anfisa into moving to his country, fans of the show were unanimous in agreeing that Anfisa’s physical and verbal abuse towards Jorge during their heated arguments was wholly unacceptable.
Often referring to herself as “The Queen”, Anfisa’s demanding personality meant that she frequently butted heads with Jorge’s friends and family, who encouraged Jorge to break it off with the Russian model. However, the couple did marry in a small ceremony to allow Anfisa to keep living in the country.
Unsurprisingly, the marriage was short-lived, with Jorge’s legal troubles from drug possession acting as a catalyst for their relationship’s demise, which appeared to be doomed from the outset. Shortly after Jorge began serving his sentence of two and a half years in prison, Anfisa filed for divorce.
At the end of their run on 90 Day Fiancé, Anfisa admitted she was only with Jorge for his appearance of wealth, to which Jorge retorted that he was only with her for her looks. Later, Jorge remarked to E! Entertainment that prison was preferable to spending time with Anfisa, which would normally be an outrageous claim about an ex, but with Anfisa, it’s pretty understandable.
Anfisa’s time on House of Villains, explained
Warning: This segment contains spoilers for the finale of ‘House of Villains.’
Since her time on 90 Day Fiancé ended, Anfisa Arkhipchenko has made a living as an influencer and social media personality, boasting an impressive 400,000 subscribers on YouTube, as of Jan. 2024. After her divorce, Anfisa has channeled much of her infamous anger into working out, as she has entered the world of competitive bodybuilding, as frequently documented on her YouTube Channel.
This is certainly a positive transformation in most eyes – except for House of Villains‘ viewers who reveled in her unpleasantness. On the 90 Day Fiancé Reddit page, many viewers complained Anfisa’s personality had radically changed, to the point that she was no longer a villain in the typical sense – at least, not to the point that it made for an entertaining watch.
“She only works out, not sure why she’s on the show to begin with”, Sandy-horseshoe wrote on the discussion thread. “I think producers thought she would bring the drama…they were sadly mistaken,” Redditor Substantial_Cold2385 commented.
Anfisa ultimately ended up in third place in the series finale, a decent result for someone supposedly so unremarkable during their time on the competition series. Her kinships with runner-up Johnny Bananas (The Real World: Key West) and winner Tanisha Thomas (Bad Girls Club) likely saved her from elimination in multiple instances.
Now that the show is over, the Russian native insists that her more timid personality on House of Villains was no mistake. Speaking to The Messenger, Arkhipchenko talked about how lurking in the shadows ultimately worked to her benefit.
“I think I wasn’t the target for anyone because they kind of underestimated me because I was so quiet and just kind of minding my own business,” Anfisa explained. The model and bodybuilder had a sort of you-scratch-my-back strategy to the competition, explaining “with Jonny Fairplay, one time I’m making him breakfast, and with Johnny Bananas, we had a lot of laughs. I got sick during filming and Tanisha was actually … rubbing VapoRub up on my chest when I was sick.”
Whether Anfisa’s seemingly dramatic transformation in personality is real or just for show, it certainly worked in her favor. Her time on the series, and the pay and promotion that comes with it, will likely allow her to live comfortably as an influencer for years to come.