Love Islanders from the past will get another chance at romance in a new “All Stars” edition, ITV has said.
After months of rumours, the broadcaster confirmed its plan to bring back familiar faces to the villa in South Africa. The cast of past contestants – yet to be announced – will attempt to couple up when the series debuts next year.
Ratings of the reality show, now hosted by Maya Jama, have seen a steady drop since its launch in 2015. The recent summer series in Majorca – won by Sammy Root and Jess Hardin – attracted 1.3m viewers for its first episode – more than a million down on the previous year.
Love Island has faced competition from a crop of new rivals like BBC Three's I Kissed a Boy, the UK's first gay dating show. It's also had to bring in various new measures in response to scrutiny of contestant care after the deaths of two former islanders.
Most recently, ITV updated its duty of care protocols and implemented a ban on friends and families using contestant's social media accounts while they're on the show.It said this was to “protect both the Islanders and their families from the adverse effects of social media”. The show has also been criticised for portraying “misogynistic and controlling behaviour” by domestic abuse charity Women's Aid.
Producers have also been praised for efforts to make the show more inclusive. For its most recent season contestants provided audio descriptions of their appearance and outfits for visually impaired fans. All Stars won't be the first trip to the luxurious South African villa – the show went to the country in 2020 for its first-ever winter series.
“It's set to be a must-watch series seeing favourite islanders from across the years heading back to the stunning South African villa,” said Mike Spencer, creative director at production company Lifted Entertainment.
Love Island, which airs on ITV2 and via ITVX in the UK, has been reproduced all over the world, including hit versions in the US and Australia.
— CutC by bbc.com
