As the final episodes of Season 7 of “Love Island USA” come to an end, only four couples remain in the villa.
The long-awaited return of Family Day showed the remaining islanders reuniting with their family members inside of the villa, where the contestants got to see and hear about what their families thought about the person they are currently coupled up with. The islanders also got the opportunity to hear from their loved ones about what they felt about the current state of the competition, the remaining islanders, and how their families feel about the decisions they have made throughout the series.
After the contestants said goodbye to their family members, a text comes through telling the Islanders that they are going to have a Thanksgiving-style dinner. As they all sit around the table, they share their fondest memories, reflecting on the past contestants and their nerves leading into the final stretch of the competition.
During the dinner, the islanders receive a text message at the table. It’s revealed to them that America has been voting on the couple they most want to see secure a spot during the finale, and the couple with the least amount of votes will be sent home.
The Islanders are brought out plates that reveal whether or not they will be sent home. Amaya Espinal and Bryan Arenales; Huda Mustafa and Chris Seeley; Olandria Carthen and Nic Vansteenberghe receive notes on their dishes that say “congratulations, you have made it to the finale,” effectively securing their spots in the season finale. The final two couples, Chelley Bissainthe and Ace Greene and Iris Kendall and Jose “Pepe” Garcia-Gonzalez are revealed to be the couples with the fewest number of votes from America.
During the final moments of the episode, two plates are brought out for the lowest ranked couples. The couples lift their lids at the same time, and Kendall and Garcia-Gonzales have received a card that tells them congratulations. It’s revealed that Bissainthe and Greene have received a card confirming that their journey in the villa has ended.
Bissainthe and Greene spoke with Variety about the final moments during the dinner, what dating looks like on the outside world and winners predictions.
You both have had quite the journey and proved to be one of the strongest connections. How did it feel finding out America didn’t vote to send you both to the finale?
Chelley Bissainthe: It was a bittersweet feeling. Going to the finale is great and all, but we already made our connection. We found each other, and we’ve grown together. There’s no more I could ask for. It was very evident that’s what America wanted.
Ace Greene: Honestly, you forget throughout the whole process that this is a whole competition in general. I found the prize by just getting to know her every single day, growing and learning about each other’s communication styles. Once we felt we had made a match, we became exclusive. I felt like my journey ended right there, and I was OK with America’s decision. But again, it’s bittersweet because you’re leaving all your friends behind.
You both were eliminated after you made it official at the Hideaway. What does dating in the outside world look like for both of you now?
Ace: We are going to take our time day by day. We are still getting to know each other outside of villa life. Life is completely different from what America gets to see. I’m excited to grow our relationship and improve our communication, especially since she’s in Florida. I’m in L.A., but she’s looking to move to L.A., and we’ll go from there.
When you decided to use the word “exclusive,” does that apply to outside of the villa too?
Ace: I hated the term “closed off” — they get closed off in the villa, go outside, and now they’re free to roam. I’m very intentional. “Exclusive” means exclusive to only each other. That’s not just in the villa. That’s in the outside world too. And I’m excited to translate that over.
Both of you are close to Nic and Olandria. How do the two of you feel about them being in a couple?
Chelley: I love it. They seem very happy together. From the beginning, there were moments when challenges would happen, and they’re kissing each other and lightly flirting. But to see them have the opportunity to explore one another and build their connection is a beautiful thing to see.
Had you noticed chemistry between them before or did it come as a surprise?
Ace: I knew day one Nic had a little bit of a secret admirer with Olandria. But he had gotten very wrapped up in his connection with Cierra. They reached a point where Casa Amor came and Olandria came, and they’re giving it a try. But they had their partner still in the back of their head, so it didn’t really work. Now that they’re coupled up again, it’s more of a clear head going into this experience. The last conversation I had with Nic was when he said they have a physical attraction to each other. They have a great friendship, and the romantic side, they’re working on and growing to get to that point.
Chelley: When family day happened, Olandria’s family enjoyed Nic’s family. Even Nic’s mother invited her to dinner. So I’m like, “OK, this is great.” They have something happening there, so I’m just excited for that.
You and Amaya were able to talk out your differences. How did it feel to have that conversation with her?
Ace: It felt great. Amaya is one of the funniest people in the villa. We have a great friendship. It might not have worked romantically. With the first conversation that you guys saw, there are 24 hours in a day, and only one hour is shown — probably like five minutes of our lives. So, it’s hard to tell how things led up to certain points, but we have a great relationship. We’ve had a great relationship throughout most of the process. I’m really excited and still rooting for her.
Viewers couldn’t quite understand why you picked Amaya and not Chelley to recouple with early on in the season. What led to that decision?
Ace: It’s no secret that Chelley and I knew each other before the experience. We had a conversation that went, “I know who you are. You know who I am, but that doesn’t mean we gotta be coupled up together right away. We’re here to explore and find our partner.” I wanted to do that with Amaya and see where things could go. I was trying to get to know Amaya more, and that’s where my head was at.
Which couple are you both rooting for?
Ace: Everybody deserves to win. Everybody has great personalities. I am personally rooting for Nic and Olandria, as well as Amaya and Bryan. Amaya has gone through the ringer throughout this whole process, and I want her to end with a fairy tale ending.
Being a “girl’s girl” was a big focus among the women. But viewers could tell there were cracks among the sisterhood, especially with Huda after the Heart Rate Challenge. How did that moment affect your friendship with her going forward?
Chelley: It took some time. I needed to process my emotions and what I was feeling, so I needed my space from her. We all stand on being a “girl’s girl” and having each other’s backs. At that moment, I didn’t feel like that’s what happened. But once we got a chance to sit down and talk to each other, it was something that we could work through. Our relationship is good. We’re friends. I just needed my space from her, but now everything is good. We understand each other. Boundaries were set.
Why do you believe she pulled Ace for her performance?
Chelley: It was just fun and games. She expressed that it was just a challenge and for fun. So, it had to be something along that line.
You had strong friendships with Nic and Taylor, but when it came to Jeremiah, you both didn’t always see eye to eye. When it came to how he navigated his relationships with Huda and then briefly Andreina, what was the final straw that made the men vote him out?
Ace: First things first, Jeremiah and I are super cool. We didn’t agree on everything when it came to relationships and how we go about love. That’s the part we agreed to disagree on. As a person, I like Jeremiah. He was super cool. Sometimes he would ask me, what do I think?, and I would tell him. It would be just like that. It was never a matter of being messy or going behind his back to say anything. I told him everything to his face. That was very important for me to make clear. It’s never easy to send anybody home because you develop super close relationships with everybody in the villa. In that situation, it was just a matter of agreeing to disagree on how we go about love. We had to make a tough decision to send Jeremiah home. I told him it’s nothing personal, and I wanted to kick it with him when I get back to the crib. Jeremiah, I hope you understand, we’re good.
Viewers loved your close bond with Olandria. Why did her elimination affect you so much before you found out she was saved?
Chelley: That was someone that I genuinely called a sister. We walked into the villa together. From day one, we were close. I wake up, she comes and gets me with her blanket. We’re walking to start our day. We’re always checking in on each other. That’s someone who felt like home to me and one of my best friends back home. We came into this experience together, and knowing the connections she’s formed and the fact that she was sent home based on a Casa decision was just crazy to me. It didn’t make sense. It wasn’t fair to me. I felt like I lost a sister. It did hit me hard. But when she was back, that made me so happy. I was good all over again because no one wants to lose their home girl. It felt like that’s what happened to me.
What did it mean to have such a close bond with her?
Chelley: It meant everything. In the same way she grounded me, I grounded her. We leaned on each other for everything. The laughs we had were about the dumbest things. We could be silly, serious, happy, sad, whatever. I could be myself for her. She could be herself with me. In the chaos that could happen in the villa, at least I had someone whom I could go to and lean on. In a way that I would usually pick up the phone and call my best friends, I had this person right next to me.
How did the desire for sisterhood among the women impact the dynamics when it came to doing challenges and exploring with the men?
Chelley: When we were pushing sisterhood, we understood what the show was too. It’s about exploring and getting to know other people. In the same breath that we’re pushing sisterhood, we’re pushing exploring. If you know your person is having a strong connection with someone, it’s nice to communicate, “Hey, I’m just letting you know I’m going to have a conversation with [said person].” You’re not asking for permission, you’re just giving a heads up, so no one can be confused or blindsided about anything. When it came to challenges, I was a big advocate from the very beginning for telling everyone to have fun and do their thing. I told them when I came into the experience, I wanted to explore everybody. I wanted to make that clear from day one. The girls did too. Not everybody did it, but I always pushed the idea that we should explore each other’s connections too. It wasn’t a thing that held us back. People who didn’t explore were making their own decisions. It wasn’t based on this sisterhood narrative of we can’t talk to anybody. We were very clear that we should do that, but be clear about how serious the connection is. It was just about communicating with one another.
Viewers felt as if you were being very strategic with how you navigated throughout the villa. What was your initial goal coming into the show?
Ace: It was not being strategic. It was being very intentional with every conversation. I’ve already had a following coming into this, and I didn’t want to come in with that entertainer mindset of doing whatever to get attention. It wasn’t that. It was me being open and communicating to the fellas, “We have to communicate more if you want to talk to a person. Let them know if you’re not interested so there’s no miscommunication, people think you’re or that you are not here for the right reasons.” But I never was strategic. I stated how I felt every time. It was never a matter of Ace being messy. If you feel a way, come talk to me about it, or I’ll pull you aside to clear the air. Again, it’s 24 hours in a day. You guys get shown for one hour. But I was never trying to be strategic or messy. Messiness is when you don’t want people to know how you’re feeling. I’m gonna stay how I feel every single time.
You two are close to Taylor. From a viewer’s perspective, it seemed as if he was stringing Olandria along until Clarke came. What were your thoughts on how he treated Olandria versus Clarke?
Ace: Taylor didn’t have that first initial attraction to Olandria. He wanted to step outside his comfort zone and get to know her. It took time to get to that point. With Clarke coming into Casa, things just clicked a little bit more easily, and things gelled together with them more. He was still trying to keep Olandria in the picture because they built so much leading up to Casa. He was also trying to get to know Clarke and his new connection. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to hold on to them both. He had to go with his gut feeling, which is what made him happy at the end of the day, and it was Clarke. It sucks because I was right there. I wanted to help Taylor build that connection, whether it be doing dates for Olandria. But it’s a matter of what he wants at the end of the day.
Chelley: I had a lot of conversations with Olandria and Taylor. Taylor would express how much he cared and was interested in growing his connection with her. They were going at a slower pace, but it worked for both of them, especially in getting to know one another. Once Casa Amor happened, their relationship was tested. When I spoke to him after the fact, he expressed that he cares about Olandria, but he felt something different when he met Clarke. My thing with Taylor was, “You’re not wrong for feeling how you feel, but you do owe the respect to be honest about your feelings.” You don’t want anyone to feel like they’re wasting their time with you, especially Olandria. She put her all into Taylor, cared about him, and wanted to take their relationship to another level. They just weren’t on the same page. It was a sticky situation because I know he tried to be as honest as he could be. But in some moments, he did not go about things the best. But at the end of the day, the heart wants what the heart wants. I always told him, “You’re not wrong for deciding to care about someone or wanting to start something with someone, but you never want to force anything just because you feel like it’s the right thing to do.” We’re all here for the same reasons, which is to find our person. I’m glad he found his person, but I wish some things had gone differently in the process.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
