Just as the Love Island USA cast was adjusting to its new couples, there were several surprise swaps — and that led to one islander getting dumped for good.
During the Sunday, June 15, episode of the dating show — which airs daily with the exception of Wednesdays — Ace Greene, Amaya Espinal, Austin Shepard, Chelley Bissainthe, Cierra Ortega, Hannah Fields, Huda Mustafa, Iris Kendall, Jalen Brown, Jeremiah Brown, Pepe Garcia, Nic Vansteenberghe, Olandria Carthen, Taylor Williams and Charlie Georgiou were in for a surprise when host Ariana Madix announced a recoupling with a twist.
Several pairings, including Taylor and Olandria, Huda and Jeremiah and Hannah and Charlie, were actively trying to work out their issues when they were told America would be breaking up three existing couples to pair new bombshells Pepe, Jalen and Iris with an islander.
What ensued next could only be described as a group crash out. islanders fell apart as they watched Jeremiah be coupled up with Iris, Hannah with Pepe and Olandria and Jalen. Things only got more tense when Ariana told the group that they will all be voting to send one of the just-dumped islanders — Huda, Charlie and Taylor — home.
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Amaya — to Ace’s amusement — started crying and initially refused to cast a vote as if she was casting a ballot in The Hunger Games. Huda seemed emotionally zoned out as both Ace and Nic voted for her to go home because they claimed she wasn’t being genuine by closing her and Jeremiah off one week into the show.
It was ultimately Charlie who was eliminated (after first making a plea to the other contestants as if he was on Big Brother). Hannah, despite several makeout sessions with newcomer Pepe, was distraught. She was even seen sobbing on the bed while holding a photo of her and Charlie.
Luckily, this is only the start to week 2 for those watching at home. (The islanders are halfway through their second week in Fiji but for the sake of timeline, Us will be tracking the events based on when they air on Peacock.)
As the group will grapple with next steps after that shocking elimination, Us Weekly is keeping you up to date with live highlights so keep scrolling:
Tuesday, June 17
This week’s episodes should come with a drinking game: Take a shot every time someone says America. Instead though, the episode picked back up with Jeremiah and Huda still fighting about the pancakes, the recoupling and whether or not they even want to stay together.
The rest of the villa was having more fun either building new connections or judging Huda and Jeremiah. Sometimes both.
Austin found himself surprised by Amaya, who he called a “breath of fresh air” as Chelley and Ace continued their little flirtation. Olandria was just as giddy — but about Taylor instead of Jalen. She even admitted she would have left with Taylor if he was dumped one episode prior.
The next day was a new level of awkward as the islanders contemplated having to spend another week hearing Huda and Jeremiah complain about each other. Jeremiah wanted to start over with Huda by suggesting they try to be friends, which she didn’t take very well.
In fact, most of the day was Huda either breaking out into an argument with him or bursting into tears at the sight of Jeremiah and Iris together. (And for those keeping track at home, Austin now knows about Huda’s daughter but she doesn’t know that he knows!)
Luckily, Ariana returned to the villa at just the right time to shake things up (and make Austin question whether he could couple up with Ariana). The latest recoupling challenge involved the girls standing behind individual doors and choosing the name of one guy they wanted to have open the door. If the guy who approached their door was their choice, they would be a match.
The recoupling started out as expected with Nic and Cierra still together and Pepe and Hannah acknowledging that viewers were right to pair them off together (you’re welcome!).
This is where things took a turn though. Austin ended up choosing Amaya over Chelley — and they are a match. This left Chelley open to coupling up with Ace, who felt the same way. Jalen was the first islander left single and vulnerable when Olandria didn’t leave the door open for him because she wanted Taylor, who was also on the same page.
The final choice then became Jeremiah standing in front of Iris and Huda’s doors. In a shocking twist, he went for Iris’ door. She left her door open for him — but so did Huda who had to hear Jeremiah explain why he wanted to start fresh with Iris.
The islanders were then told to choose who they wanted to see stay in the villa: Jalen or Huda. All of the women (even Iris!) chose Huda while a few of the men (Pepe, Nic, Austin and Jeremiah) chose Jalen. Even Ace opted for Huda but based on his reaction, it wasn’t for her as much as it probably was for the drama.
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Monday, June 16
Picking up immediately where the recoupling left off, Jeremiah and Huda were processing their split — separately. Jeremiah ended up at odds with Nic and Ace, who accused him of “scamming” and being a “fraud” in his relationship with Huda. Jeremiah tried to defend his actions when what he should have been doing was comforting Huda. That was the nail in the coffin for the couple who spent the rest of the episode at odds — but more on that later.
Jeremiah only had Austin on his side while the other men either had nothing to say or were worried about his future in the villa. Huda, meanwhile, was breaking down in person and in confessionals about Jeremiah not checking up on her. He even heard her cursing him out in the shower, which set the mood for a very difficult night now that Jeremiah is sharing a bed with Iris instead.
Before the rest of the islanders were woken up, the new couples (Iris and Jeremiah, Pepe and Hannah and Olandria and Jalen) were whisked away to a beach where they got to enjoy some snorkeling, massages and deep conversation about their individual futures together.
Hannah put her uncontrollable sobbing over Charlie’s exit on the backburner, which allowed her to explore her feelings for Pepe. By the end of the episode, she was now saying she saw “more” in Pepe and wasn’t ruling out a romance.
Back at the villa, Chelley and Austin were once again flirting right in front of Austin. He could have used that time to plan a spontaneous date for Chelley (like she asked) but instead they sat down for another conversation about how he didn’t want to be in a love triangle. Based on that sneak peek for the next episode, Austin might get his wish sooner rather than later.
The reminder of the episode was Huda and Jeremiah’s relationship seemingly coming to an end. After Jeremiah returned in great spirits following his date with Iris, Huda snapped and called him out in front of everyone. She might not have heard Jeremiah say she should have been sent home but she did catch wind of him admitting he wants to explore other relationships.
Huda threw out some curse words, she flipped Jeremiah off and she had an awkward conversation with Iris. That all accumulated in a conversation where Huda accused Jeremiah of playing the victim and being selfish, which signified the end of a relationship — at least in Us’ eyes.
The preview for the next episode confirmed there’s another recoupling happening in the nick of time.
Sunday, June 15
The second week (of episodes) started with Hannah admitting to Charlie that she kissed Pepe. Charlie tried to be supportive of Hannah exploring her options but in typical Love Island USA form, Charlie got even by seeing which women he could form connections with as well. He specifically zeroed in on newcomers Iris and Amaya, with Amaya not taking the bait as she is close with Hannah.
Hannah had one more steamy makeout session with Pepe before realizing he reminded her of her physical connection with exes compared to her romantic bond with Charlie. After a meaningful chat, Hannah and Charlie were recommitted to a future together, which America didn’t see before locking in their votes (but more on that later).
An undercooked pancake was nearly the straw that broke the camel’s back for Jeremiah and Huda who had been arguing over her reactions to him kissing other women, including Olandria, in challenges. Still, the twosome slept together shortly before the already-infamous recoupling with America’s votes.
Austin, for his part, told Chelley he was insecure about her connection with Ace — which only made Chelley want Ace more as he is more lined up more with her spontaneous nature. It didn’t take long for Ace, however, to remind Chelley once again that he was open to any new connection that could happen when more bombshells entered the villa, which was just code for he wasn’t looking to commit to Chelley.
There was also Olandria considering a future with Jalen. After having to kiss just about every guy during the woodcutting challenge, Olandria had a moment with Jalen that made her unsure whether they were moving too fast on the physical front.
This all accumulated into what some viewers are referring to as the most “traumatizing” recoupling where the contestants got their first glimpse into what fans think of the season so far.
The June 15 episode ended with the following couples still together and on the show: Ace and Amaya, Austin and Chelley, Cierra and Nic, Hannah and Pepe, Iris and Jeremiah, Olandria and Jalen. The contestants that are single and vulnerable are Taylor and Huda.
New episodes of Love Island USA stream on Peacock daily at 9 p.m. ET. Us Weekly will be updating this post with the biggest developments.
