Love Island host Ariana Madix breaks her silence as the show faces backlash over contestant Cierra Ortega’s alleged racist post and calls for her immediate removal grow
Love Island USA host Ariana Madix is responding to growing outrage after a resurfaced social media post allegedly shared by contestant Cierra Ortega sparked backlash online.
Viewers have been flooding the show’s social media channels demanding action and questioning why Ortega wasn’t immediately removed from the villa, with many labeling the post “racist.” Tensions boiled over when a fan called out Madix for supposedly staying quiet on the matter.
But the Vanderpump Rules star pushed back, writing, “Not silent. You don’t know what your talking about.” The brief but pointed comment was enough to get fans talking—and didn’t go unnoticed as pressure continues to mount on production to address the situation.
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According to a report from The U.S. Sun, Love Island USA producers have been holding crisis talks about Ortega’s future on the show. A production source revealed, “Cierra is in deep trouble, that is for sure. This kind of language is unacceptable. It was a huge disappointment when we saw it. Everyone is very, very bothered and pissed about that. We will hold a meeting to decide what we should do… but it doesn’t look great at all for Cierra as a lot of us want to take her out of the show as soon as possible.”
The insider added that this isn’t the first time the series has had to respond to similar behavior. Earlier in the season, contestant Yulissa Escobar was sent home after the first episode due to racist remarks.
“We kicked Yulissa out of the show at the beginning of the season because of racial slurs too,” the source said. “This kind of behavior and use of this kind of word is unacceptable, and we condemn all kinds of racism, discrimination and insults towards anyone.”
The post allegedly made by Ortega before her time in the villa appears to reference her cosmetic procedures, but used language that many felt was racially offensive.
The message read, “I can also be a little c—-y when I laugh/smile so I love getting a mini brow lift to open up my eyes and get that snatched look. This is not me encouraging but more so sharing.”
Insiders say the production team is “furious” the post was ever made public. “You can’t use words like this, you can’t use racial slurs and we can’t accept that, that is so bad,” the source continued.
“Everyone is furious that this post exists, that she used that word. How is it possible to post something like this and not expect any consequences?”
As of now, Ortega remains on the show and no official statement has been released by the network.
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