‘Love Island USA’ Lawsuit Alleges Producers Sabotaged Season 4 Contestant Sereniti Springs
Some shady things have been going on behind the scenes on Love Island USA, a new lawsuit alleges. Two former crew members on the Peacock reality series recently sued ITV and NBCUniversal. They claim California labor laws were violated and contestants were mistreated on the show. According to Jasmine Crestwell and Alex Rinks, who filed the suit in Los Angeles County Superior Court on July 19, season 4 contestant Sereniti Springs was particularly singled out as one of the only women of color on the show.
‘Love Island USA’ Season 4 cast member Sereniti Springs blocked from making connections with other cast members, lawsuit claims
In their lawsuit, Crestwell and Rinks claim that Sereniti, who is Black, was set up to fail on Love Island USA’s fourth season. In court documents obtained by People, they claim that producers interfered with “her ability to forge connections with male cast members, thus sabotaging her chances on the show.”
On Love Island USA, the last couple remaining in the villa at the end of the season wins $100,000. Cast members who fail to pair up with another cast member risk elimination from the show.
Crestwell says she raised concerns that Sereniti wasn’t being treated fairly. Executive producer Sophie Bush allegedly responded by saying, “We are protecting her because we know none of the boys on the show like her, and we would hate to see her get rejected.”
Serenti was the sixth contestant to leave the villa in season 4. She exited the show after 13 days when her partner Chazz Bryant dumped her for new Islander Kat Rose.
Fired crew members were also concerned about ‘unsafe’ conditions in the ‘Love Island’ villa
Racially motivated discrimination isn’t the only troubling issue raised in the lawsuit. The complaint also says that conditions in the supposedly luxurious Santa Barbara villa where season 4 filming took place were anything but comfortable. In reality, the villa was “unsafe and unsanitary … a ramshackle, dilapidated ranch with inadequate plumbing and inoperable bathrooms.”
Female cast members were encouraged to engage in sexual relationships with male cast members, even if they’d expressed reservations about doing so, the complaint also alleges. Producers also “openly commented on video feeds of female Islanders showering and having sex, creating a deeply uncomfortable work environment for women on set.”
Rinks and Crestwell say they brought their concerns about the Love Island USA filming conditions to executive producers. They were subsequently fired.
‘Love Island’ producers deny the allegations
Love Island USA is based on the hit U.K. series Love Island. It moved from CBS to Peacock for its fourth season in 2022. Producers from the original U.K. franchise were brought in an attempt to improve the show’s ratings. But according to the suit, the new producers’ racist and abusive behavior negatively effected the mental health of the islanders.
NBCUniversal did not respond to People or The Wrap‘s requests for comment about the lawsuit. A spokesperson for ITV America told both outlets that the lawsuit was “a frivolous attack” timed to coincide with the July 18 premiere of Love Island USA Season 5.
Crestwell and Rinks “were terminated for cause, purely in relation to their job performance. These characterizations are false. Love Island USA’s commitment to diversity and proven track record speaks for itself. We categorically deny the allegations and look forward to defending against these claims in a court of law.”
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