Week three of Love Island USA was truly a roller coaster of emotions, and from the looks of it, next week won’t be any calmer. From Megan Thee Stallion herself to a seismic Casa Amor shake–up, this week had viewers laughing, crying, and screaming (for some of us, all three at once). So if you’ve been lying incapacitated from heat exhaustion somewhere under this sweltering East Coast sun, here’s the lowdown on everything you missed.
Thursday kicked off with a bang. Season six must have done wonders for Peacock, because they clearly had the budget to go big: The first challenge of the week was helmed by none other than Megan Thee motherfucking Stallion. Not only does she host, but production splurged so the rapper could spend some one–on–one time with the girls as they got ready. If there’s anything we learned from her special appearance, it’s that celebrities are just like us. Stallion is absolutely loving this season of Love Island, and yes, she’s scrolling too. “It’s so easy to watch people on TV and just forget that these are real human beings,” she said. “These are real ladies, these are real women with real feelings.” Her reminder rings true in the face of some brutal internet vitriol—once the islanders leave the villa, they’ll face every comment and critique waiting for them online.
The first part of the challenge was a guys–versus–girls twerk–off, and while watching, I thought to myself, “How have they not thought of this until season seven?” and immediately followed up with, “There’s no way in hell I’d survive ten seconds on that stage.” Of course, the girls win, all thanks to their strongest team players—Huda Mustafa and Olandria Carthen.
The challenge ends with a puzzle, which is pretty difficult for most people who apply for Love Island, but the prize is well worth their trouble. As soon as both teams snap that last piece into place, the villa doors fling open to reveal not one but two bombshells: TJ Palma and Andreina Santos, who waste no time chatting up most of the islanders.
On Friday, the newcomers really shift into high gear, zeroing in on the coupled–up contestants; TJ pulls Iris Kendall for their first chat in Soul Ties, where the two share a passionate makeout, while Jeremiah White practically crawls across the floor to woo Andreina. In a move so petty it’s iconic, TJ graciously brews Cierra Ortega her morning tea—only for her steady partner, Nicolas Vansteenberghe, to swoop in and throw it away. What a petty boy.
Friday also shines a spotlight on some initial tension between the new couple Austin Shepard and Amaya Espinal. After fumbling through the “What’s your beef?” challenge, complete with a hokey, if not sort of ridiculous farm–themed obstacle course, Austin confides in Jeremiah that he finds Amaya “too clingy,” but he never summons the guts to bring this up with her, leaving her blissfully unaware that they are in fact not A–OK. After the episode, the public vote reopens, with viewers set to choose their favorite boy and girl; those tallies determine who faces the chopping block in Sunday’s imminent dumping.
The night’s drama kicks off around the fire pit, where gathered islanders one–by–one receive a text revealing their fate. Those who are “safe” were fortuitously chosen as America’s current favorites, leaving the bottom three boys and girls vulnerable. This time, the safe girls will choose which girl to dump, and the boys must do the same. America’s bottom three girls are: Hannah Fields, Iris, and Amaya. When the smoke clears around Hannah, Iris, and Amaya on the girls’ side, and Pepe García Gonzalez, Austin, and Jeremiah among the boys, the villa braces itself. After careful deliberation that we will probably (definitely) end up hearing about at the season seven reunion, it’s Jeremiah and Hannah who are shown the door.
How could this week possibly get any better, you ask? Two words: Casa Amor. This year, things play out a little differently. The girls decamp to the second location while the boys hold down the villa. Unlike past seasons, our original islanders are single when the new boys and girls arrive—and much, much more willing to recouple. But there’s another wrinkle: before Casa Amor, there were seven girls and six boys, but only five new women and six new men arrive, which means that once the first recoupling concludes, one boy and one girl will be single and vulnerable.
Things kicked off in typical, Casa Amor fashion, with six new lads—Elan Bibas, Bryan Arenales, Zac Woodworth, Zak Srakaew, JD Dodard, and Chris Seeley—arriving at the separate villa, while back home the original crew found themselves joined by five fresh faces: Gracyn Blackmore, Clarke Carraway, Vanna Einerson, Coco Watson, and Jaden Duggar. After a series of sloppy makeouts and shameless butt grabbing, our new couples are:
Nicolas and Clarke
Ace Greene and Vanna
Taylor Williams and Coco
Pepe and Gracyn
Austin and Jaden
Iris and Zac
Olandria and Zak
Chelley Bissainthe and Chris
Cierra and Elan
Andreina and Bryan
Amaya and TJ are single and vulnerable, and if they don’t find a new connection in 24 hours, they risk being dumped from the island.
Exactly one day later, the first–ever Casa Amor recoupling arrives—and it is round–robin chaos. In each villa, the lone islander stands alone by the fire pit. If a Casa Amor bombshell believes that they have a stronger connection with the single than they do in their current couple, they must stand, and upon standing their ex becomes the new single, circling back to the flames, and so on—until only one person is left with nobody willing to step up for them.
This is probably one of the most dramatic recouplings of the season, and I know I said this last week, but they just keep getting better and better. The girls went first: Amaya planted herself in front of the fire pit, daring anyone to come. Within seconds, Zak—who’d been cozying up to Olandria just hours earlier—stands to be with her. Nobody goes for Olandria, and she’s dumped from the island. Everyone (but Zak, probably) is devastated.
The boys’ recoupling proves even more complex. Originally TJ is single, but Vanna wastes no time standing to recouple with him, which leaves Ace queued up at the fire pit. Coco stands for Ace, and shortly after, Clarke jumps to Taylor’s side, leaving Nic stranded by the flames and unceremoniously dumped from the villa.
By Tuesday night, two original islanders had been sent home—leaving many viewers shocked, and if you’re like me, in tears—but in true Love Island fashion, there’s one more twist to this tale. In Tuesday’s final scene, Olandria arrives outside the villa and beckons Nic into a black car. It’s so obviously scripted and almost painful to watch, but nothing like this has ever happened after a Love Island USA dumping. What does it mean? I guess we’ll have to tune in again to find out.
