NEED TO KNOW
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Cierra Ortega was a contestant on season 7 of Love Island USA
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On the July 6 episode, narrator Iain Stirling announced that Ortega had left the villa because of a “personal situation”
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Ahead of her departure, racist comments allegedly from her social media caused controversy
Cierra Ortega was finding love in the Love Island USA villa until she had to unexpectedly leave.
During the July 6 episode, narrator Iain Stirling shocked fans when he announced that Ortega had left the hit Peacock show due to a “personal situation.”
Prior to her sudden departure, past racist social media posts that Ortega allegedly wrote had resurfaced. Two posts contained slurs offensive to Asian people.
Shortly after leaving the show, Ortega’s parents took over her Instagram page to address their daughter’s exit while also asking people to stop sending her “threats.”
“We’re not here to justify or ignore what’s surfaced,” they wrote at the time. “We understand why people are upset, and we know accountability matters. But what’s happening online right now has gone far beyond that.”
Here’s everything to know about Cierra Ortega and why she left Love Island USA amid her scandal.
Who is Cierra Ortega?
Cierra Ortega was a contestant on season 7 of Love Island USA. She entered the villa on night 2 of the hit Peacock show as a bombshell and quickly hit it off with fellow contestant Nic Vansteenberghe.
“I’m the full package: brains, beauty, and boobs,” she said upon entering the villa. “I don’t care whose toes I have to step on. If I can take your man, he was never your man in the first place.”
Prior to her time on Love Island USA, Ortega worked as a content creator in Los Angeles, Calif. She partnered with various brands — including Skims, Good American and AdoreMe. However, she also clarified in a March 2025 Instagram post that she was “not a model, not an influencer, just a girl pouring a lot of love into herself and letting the universe do the rest.”
Ortega graduated from the University of Arizona in 2021 and moved to L.A. after school, per her LinkedIn.
What happened to Cierra Ortega on Love Island USA?
Ortega arrived in Fiji as a bombshell on the second night by kissing all of the men while blindfolded. Afterwards, she got a chance to know all her fellow islanders, and she began pursuing Vansteenberghe.
He and Ortega became an official couple after he chose to couple up with her and sent Belle-A Walker home.
In addition to getting to know Vansteenberghe, Ortega also developed a bond with bombshell Elan Bibas at Casa Amor. However, upon returning to the villa, both Ortega and Vansteenberghe decided to recouple. Shortly afterwards, the two decided to close themselves off to other options.
Why did Cierra Ortega leave Love Island USA?
A few minutes into the Love Island USA episode on July 6, narrator Stirling told audience members that Ortega had left the villa.
“Welcome back to Love Island USA,” he said after the first commercial break. “Cierra has left the villa due to a personal situation, leaving Nic officially single.”
After the announcement, a few of the boys comforted Vansteenberghe, who had decided to stay.
“Right before Cierra had left, my mind was clear,” Vansteenberghe said in his confessional. “I knew what the future would look like, and now I’m lost.”
Vansteenberghe ended up coupling up with Olandria Carthen at the end of the episode.
What did Cierra Ortega allegedly do?
As Ortega became more famous during her time on the hit dating competition show, her past social media posts resurfaced.
In a January 2015 Instagram post, Ortega allegedly used a racial slur targeting Asian people while describing her appearance. She allegedly used the same slur eight years later in February 2023 when she described her eyes and smile while getting Botox.
Viewers quickly began asking for Peacock to remove Ortega from the show. In addition, over 17,000 people signed an online petition to “get Cierra kicked off of Love Island.“
Fans also took to social media and flooded Ortega’s profiles to condemn her alleged actions.
There was also precedent for this action: the show previously removed contestant Yulissa Escobar when clips resurfaced of her using racist language.
Has Cierra Ortega said anything about her departure?
Since Ortega left the villa, she has not publicly addressed her scandal or departure. Peacock has also not released a statement regarding her exit.
However, after the July 6 episode aired, her parents issued a statement on her Instagram Stories where they clarified that Ortega had still not been connected to the outside world.
“We’ve seen the posts, the headlines, the hurt and the hate. And while Cierra hasn’t seen any of it yet, we have. And so have the people who love her,” they wrote.
“The threats. The cruel messages. The attacks on her family, her friends, even her supporters, it’s heartbreaking,” the statement continued. “It’s uncalled for. And no one deserves that kind of hate, no matter what mistake they’ve made.”
Her parents explained that their daughter “is still away” but no longer in the villa.
“She hasn’t had the chance to process any of this or speak for herself,” they wrote. “But we know our daughter. We know her heart. And when she returns, we believe she’ll face this with honesty, growth, and grace.”
The family ended their statement by thanking those who have shown love and support.
Meanwhile, former contestant Walker, who was dumped for Ortega, made a statement on her own Instagram Stories, thanking the show for “taking a stand” against racism.
“When I first saw what my fellow Islander said on their social media pages, I was incredibly heartbroken,” Walker wrote. “But I wanted to wait until they left the villa and were able to address the situation, genuinely apologize, and commit to learning from the experience before deciding how our relationship would look moving forward.”
She added, “As screenshots continued to surface, it became clear that I could no longer support this person, and made the decision to unfollow them a couple of days ago. Asian hate is oftentimes overlooked and dismissed. But being a first-generation American, I have personally witnessed and experienced how real and hurtful comments like these are.”
Walker reiterated that she did “not condone bigotry or racism of any kind” and that she also does “not condone hate.”
Read the original article on People
The post Why Did Cierra Ortega Leave “Love Island USA”? Inside Her Sudden Exit for ‘Personal’ Reasons appeared first on People.
