Love Island USA boots Season 8 contestant after alleged use of racial slur circulates online
A “Love Island USA” cast member has once again been booted from the villa.This time, it happened before the newest season even premiered.Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.As soon as the reality dating show unveiled its Season 8 cast on Thursday, online fans began digging into the contestants’ backgrounds.
Two videos soon began circulating on social media showing a contestant, Vasana Montgomery, appearing to say the N-word on camera — once while singing a song and another time while yelling at an arcade game.By Friday, just days before the season was slated to air, Montgomery had been removed from the cast.Montgomery did not immediately respond to a request for comment.Peacock confirmed to NBC News that Montgomery will no longer be on the show.
The streaming service said the videos that resurfaced were not publicly shared until after the cast announcement.(Peacock is owned by NBCUniversal, the parent company of NBC News.)Each season of “Love Island USA” follows a group of singles over the course of six weeks as they race to couple up and form romantic connections, or risk getting dumped from the island.
Throughout the show, the entry of new contestants (whom the show calls “bombshells”) creates tension as the producers continue to insert psychological games and plot twists.The U.S.spinoff of the original British show, which is filmed in real time and airs six nights a week, was relatively niche before it exploded in popularity in 2024.
Last year, Season 7 became Peacock’s most-watched original season of all time, with more than 18 billion minutes viewed.The Love Island USA villa in Viti Levu, Fiji in 2024.Ben Symons / Peacock via Getty Images fileBut with the skyrocketing attention also came an influx of scrutiny from new fans, who quickly gained a reputation for displaying both extreme loyalty and extreme hostility to the people they see onscreen.Some viewers have been quick t...