'Love Island USA 'Has Its Most Emotional Exit This Season as a Closed Couple Is Voted Off
The episode comes after Cierra Ortega's abrupt exit on Sunday, July 6 — and allegedly racist social media posts — caused a stir among viewers
The series is planning to air its finale on Sunday, July 13Love Island USA
It's coming down to the wire at the Love Island USA villa.
On the Tuesday, July 8 episode of the hit Peacock series, fans saw yet another shakeup as one more couple was sent home ahead of the July 13 finale.
Before the episode, America was given the chance to vote for their favorite couple, and in turn, their least favorite couple, in the villa after the Sunday, July 6 episode. As the Tuesday, July 8, episode slowly came to a close, the group of 12 islanders received a text to gather around the fire pit to learn who America had saved.
The first couple saved was Chelley Bissainthe and Ace Greene, followed by Amaya Espinal and Bryan Arenales. The third couple saved was Iris Kendall and Pepe Garcia, and then the fourth was Huda Mustafa and Chris Seeley.
It was then down to Taylor Williams and Clarke Carraway, and the new couple, Nic Vansteenberghe and Olandria Carthen. The latter of whom coupled up after Nic's previous connection, Cierra Oretga, abruptly departed the dating series during the Sunday, July 6, episode.
Although the new couple had connected just days earlier, they were safe and Taylor and Clarke were officially dumped from the island.
Their exit followed a tense exchange between Taylor and Olandria after he decided to pursue Clarke, whom he had met during Casa Amor. While Olandria was left single after returning to the villa, Taylor and Clarke had a deep connection and, throughout their time as a couple, remained inseparable.
During Taylor and Clarke's exit, as the group tearfully said goodbye to the pair, Clarke was embraced in a group hug by all the women. "Don't make me cry, y'all," Clarke told them.
Meanwhile, when the men said goodbye to Taylor, Pepe told him, "I love you, bro," and Ace said, "F--- dog. This s--- hurts. You came here and you did what you needed to do. You found somebody that was meant for you. Proud of you, man. Thank you, man, for everything."Then Taylor joined Ace and Nic for one last group chat. "What me and Clarke have is real. You know what I mean?" he said. "I'm gonna miss y'all brothers."
As the two shared their final thoughts, Taylor told the camera, "My Love Island experience was a damn near rollercoaster. When I spoke to Clarke for the first time, that spark and connection, we had something that I had never had before. I can't be too sad because that's what I came here for, to find a connection and I found it, and also I'm leaving with it."
Clarke echoed the sentiment, adding, "Unfortunately, time wasn't on our side. But that's okay because we're leaving together."
Taylor and Clarke's elimination follows their decision to recouple during the Sunday, July 6 episode. In the same episode, narrator Iain Stirling announced that Cierra had departed the dating series due to a 'personal situation,' thereby leaving contestant Nic single.
Ultimately, Nic was chosen by Olandria, which fulfilled several fans' hopes that friends Olandria and Nic would lean into the romantic rather than the platonic, even developing the viral couple name 'Nicolandria.'
Narrator Iain Stirling announced on Sunday, July 6, that Ortega, 25, departed the dating series due to a 'personal situation,' therefore leaving contestant Nic Vansteenberghe single.
Prior to her exit, the content creator faced a backlash as multiple racist social media posts that she allegedly made resurfaced. At least two of them contained slurs offensive to Chinese people.
Ortega appeared to use a racial slur to describe her smile in a January 2015 social media post, before using the slur again in February 2023 to describe her smile while getting Botox.
Following the posts resurfacing, she lost over 200,000 followers, per the Daily Mail. Over 17,000 people also signed a petition set up to campaign for her removal from Love Island season 7.
'We're not here to justify or ignore what's surfaced,' they shared in part. 'We understand why people are upset, and we know accountability matters. But what's happening online right now has gone far beyond that.'
'The threats. The cruel messages. The attacks on her family, her friends, even her supporters, it's heartbreaking,' they continued. 'It's uncalled for. And no one deserves that kind of hate, no matter what mistake they've made.'
While noting that Ortega did not have the 'chance to process any of this or speak for herself,' they shared that they expected the reality star 'face this with honesty, growth, and grace.'
Following her departure, her costar Belle-A Walker praised the show's producers for 'taking a stand' against racism in a lengthy post on her Instagram Stories.
This season also saw Yulissa Escobar's sudden exit during episode two. Escobar said the N-word during two separate podcast appearances. She apologized in a lengthy Instagram post on June 6, saying in part, 'In those clips, I used a word I never should've used, a racial slur. I used it ignorantly, not fully understanding the weight, history or pain behind it.'
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Love Island USA season 7 airs daily, except Wednesdays, at 9 p.m. ET on Peacock.
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