The Season 6 cast of “Love Island USA” is reuniting on-screen for the first time since leaving the villa in Fiji.
“Love Island: Beyond The Villa” is a new spinoff from Peacock’s mega-hit reality dating show “Love Island USA,” which set to premiere on Sunday, July 13. The new series follows the Season 6 islanders around Los Angeles as they navigate new careers, evolving friendships, newfound fame and complex relationships outside of the “Love Island” villa.
The main cast features couples JaNa Craig and Kenny Rodriguez, Leah Kateb and Miguel Harichi, as well as Serena Page and her boyfriend Kordell Beckham, who will return as recurring guest star throughout the season. Additionally, the show will include exes Kaylor Martin and Aaron Evans, as well as singles Kendall Washington, Olivia “Liv” Walker, and Connor Newsum.
Back in June, Peacock released the official trailer for the series, giving fans a first look at what they can expect from the former islanders. The first scene teased a sneak peek of Martin and Evans speaking face-to-face after their explosive breakup last summer. In a recent interview, when asked about having to film with Evans after the breakup, Martin admitted that it was “very intimidating” at first.
“He was out of country, out of mind,” she said. “Reality sank in a little bit when I knew that we were doing this project together and he was going to be involved. We will always care for one another, and I wish him the best. It was hard because we can go from zero to 100 real quick. We both pull each other’s heart strings in some ways.”
In addition to reuniting with her ex-boyfriend, the show will also delve into the ongoing feud she has with Walker. The two former best friends were inseparable after leaving the villa, and at one point, lived together. Despite the friction in their relationship, Walker told Variety that she still views Martin as a “sister.” She confirmed, however, that fans will gain a better understanding of both of their perspectives.
Outside of their feud, fans will get to see updates on each of their dating lives since leaving “Love Island USA.”
Page, Craig and Kateb, on the other hand, appear to be thriving in the sisterhood they formed while on the reality show. They started referring to themselves as PPG, an acronym that stands for PowerPuff Girls, after they became a close-knit trio during and after the show. While fans have kept up with the friend group, the trailer teased a more intimate look into their romantic relationships.
Kateb’s relationship with Miguel seemingly deepens as the sneak peek shows them testing their potential parenting skills with a fake baby and him meeting her horses, which Kateb noted that she’s most excited for fans to see. As their bond continues to grow, Harichi said he’s most excited for fans to see how they haven’t left their honeymoon stage.
“It’s always just stayed,” he said. “People are going to get to see why Leah and I get along so well. It’s going to be an in-depth look at our communication, banter and interests. Since leaving the villa, it has continued to improve and progress over time. That’s probably one of the things I’m most excited about, is people seeing why we get along the way we do.”
Serena is seen opening up about her struggles with anxiety in a conversation with PPG, which she said is a challenge she’s always had but was triggered with the rapid rise to fame after being crowned the Season 6 winner of “Love Island USA” alongside Beckham. In those tense moments, Beckham’s attentiveness and patience helped to calm her down.
“He is a very patient, kind and sweet man,” she said. “He’s there in any way to make this easier. He’ll wake up like before, to make sure I don’t wake up anxious like, ‘Oh my god, what am I doing today?’ He’ll wake up and be like, ‘What do we need to get done today?’ He’s very attentive to me, and it’s beautiful.”
Craig and Rodriguez’s relationship is tested, since they are not on the same page about living situations. Although they are currently long distance, with Rodriguez living in Dallas and Craig in Las Vegas, filming the spinoff allowed them to be in the same city at the same time. However, Rodriguez was adamant about living separately, while Craig wanted the opposite.
“Since leaving the villa, it’s a big jump moving in together with someone, and I didn’t want it to be televised, especially the first time,” Rodriguez said. “So we rented rooms next to each other. Another aspect for me is privacy. When JaNa gets ready for events, she has a huge glam team. Usually, there’s somebody in there for wardrobe, and sometimes I don’t have the space to change and things like that. Granted, we were always together on the show. It was great to experience L.A. and to be with her in the same city.”
Now that filming is over, Rodriguez confirmed that they are still long-distance and continuing to live separately.
As for the singles, Newsum is learning to navigate his romantic relationships on top of his public fallout with Craig following his recoupling with Kateb and calling her “two-faced” last summer. According to Craig, she strictly views him as an “acquaintance” in her life.
“I was already forgiving in the beginning,” she said. “When someone shows their true colors, you have to take that person for who they are. That was just so last summer; it’s not that deep. I’m a jokester, so I’m always playing around. But in the end, there’s no hate. I let bygones be bygones. I put people in categories. He’s an acquaintance. Coming out of the villa, we’ve never hung out. I don’t ever see that happening. He’s just him and I’m me.”
When it comes to returning to reality TV, PPG agreed that they aren’t too worried about what viewers will see.
“At the end of the day, you see what you see,” Kateb said. “We don’t even see or know how they’re gonna edit things. Honestly, it’s not in our hands. But I don’t care, to be quite honest, because people are going to say what they’re going to say. As long as I have my girls and my man, I’m good. And I don’t give a fuck.”
Following the Sunday debut of “Love Island: Beyond The Villa,” episodes will stream weekly on Thursdays at 6:00 p.m. PT /9:00 p.m. ET on Peacock.