Love Island USA producers sued by former staffers

Two crew members allege contestant mistreatment and a California employment law violation

Previous Love Island USA staffers have filed a lawsuit against two of the show’s producers for serious mistreatment and for violating California employment laws during the fourth season.

A filing obtained by People confirms previous Villaworkers Jasmine Crestwell and Alex Rinks are suing the Love Island USA producers ITV and NBCUniversal.

Allegedly, individuals from the Love Island UK franchise were brought on the show to help boost ratings even though there had been previous reports of “racism and abusive practices” by UK crew members, leading to negative impacts on the Islanders’ mental health.

According to Crestwell and Rink's complaint, the executive producers were pressuring female contestants “to engage in sexual relationships without regard for their personal preferences or genuine consent,” which contributed to their alleged “flippant” ideas on sexual consent. In addition, the filing claimed that the producers “openly commented on video feeds of female Islanders showering and having sex, creating a deeply uncomfortable work environment for women on set”.

Serenti Springs was specifically named in the lawsuit as “one of the few women of colour on the show,” who was allegedly severely mistreated compared to the other contestants. Specifically, producers would purposefully hinder “her ability to forge connections with male cast members, thus sabotaging her chances on the show,” the lawsuit said.

Crestwell claimed she told producer Sophie Bush about Springs’ mistreatment, to which Bush allegedly replied: “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.”

The filing also addresses complaints Rink brought about the Villa’s conditions during the fourth season. She said not only was the Villa still under construction but the place had “unsafe and unsanitary conditions in the show’s supposedly luxe ‘villa’ - in reality, a ramshackle, dilapidated ranch with inadequate plumbing and inoperable bathrooms”. Due to the alleged construction still going on, contestants were apparently “restricted to specific portable toilets connected to their rooms”.

Following Crestwell and Rink’s complaints made to the producers, the team set up a time to meet in a “safe space” to address their concerns, but Crestwell and Rink say that the discussion was really a “trap” for the producers to fire them. According to the lawsuit, Crestwell and Rink’s termination violated the California employment law. The specific violation falls under the written law that states, “retaliation against employees who make legally protected complaints of discrimination and OSHA violations”.

A spokesperson from ITV America denied the claims outlined in the lawsuit in a statement to The Independent. “This is a frivolous attack at an opportunistic moment, timed to the season five debut, made by two former employees who were terminated for cause, purely in relation to their job performance,” the spokesperson said.

The statement continued: “These characterisations 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.”

The Independent has requested a comment from NBCUniversal.

Love Island USA is an adaptation of the UK version of the show, which aired its first season in 2015. The US version premiered on 9 July 2019, hosting 25 contestants on their journey to find love, establish connections, and a shot at taking home $100,000 in total or split halfway between them and their partner.