yulissa escobar

Former “Love Island USA” contestant Cierra Ortega has spoken out after her abrupt departure from the villa on Sunday following the resurfacing of posts containing a racial slur.

Ortega, who left just one week from the finale of the hit Peacock show’s seventh season, addressed the incident on Wednesday.

“Now that I’ve been back in the U.S. for about 48 hours and I’ve had the chance to process,” she said in a video posted on Instagram, “I now feel like I’m at a space where I can speak about this without being highly emotional because I am not the victim in this situation.”

“Love Island” commentator Iain Stirling broke the news during Sunday’s episode, stating that the 25-year-old Angeleno had left the show to deal with a “personal issue” that arose. Though it was not explicitly stated why Ortega had left, she had recently faced backlash over social media posts that resurfaced containing a racial slur against Asian people.

She used the slur in 2020 on TikTok and in 2023 on Instagram to describe her own appearance.

Ortega initially remained silent on the issue, with her parents taking to addressing the controversy themselves. In a statement Sunday on Ortega’s Instagram story, they said the backlash had resulted in “one of the most painful weeks of our lives.”

“We’ve seen the posts, the headlines, the hurt and the hate,” they wrote, adding that their daughter had been subject to threats and “cruel messages.”

“It’s uncalled for. And no one deserves that kind of hate, no matter what mistake they’ve made,” they continued.

Ortega chose to address the situation via an “accountability video” in addition to a written statement.

“While I was in the villa, there were some posts that resurfaced from my past where I was very naively using an incredibly offensive and derogatory term. And before I get into the details, I want to first start by addressing not just anyone that I have hurt or deeply offended, but most importantly, the entire Asian community. I am deeply, truly, honestly, so sorry,” she said.

“I had no ill intention when I was using it, but that’s absolutely no excuse because intent doesn’t excuse ignorance … this is not an apology video. This is an accountability video.”

She continued by insisting that the “lesson was learned” and, in an additional post made to her Instagram story, said c she was “genuinely ashamed” of her actions.

“Once again, to the Asian community, I am deeply sorry for my thoughtless mistake and the harm it caused,” she added.

Just a month prior to Ortega’s departure, another contestant faced a similar debacle. Yulissa Escobar left the villa by the season’s second episode due to her use of racial slurs against Black people during a podcast conversation

In response, Escobar also took to Instagram on June 6 to make an apology: “I want to apologize for using a word I had no right in using. … The truth is, I didn’t know better then, but I do now.”

Want to succeed in reality show love? It might be best to keep your public life free of racial slurs.

“Love Island USA” contestant Yulissa Escobar, whose use of the N-word on a couple of podcasts surfaced over the weekend before the show’s rocky premiere Tuesday, was there and then gone in a heartbeat. A mere blip in love-competition TV’s continuum of smokin’ hot contestants.

She used the N-word casually and naturally in conversation, per video posted on Reddit and TMZ. She did not appear to be using it with disparaging intent — but the word is still racist on its face.

“They’re gonna get cancelled so bad and not like I care but they should be protecting them from mass cancellation like this by not casting them in the first place,” one Reddit user said.

Plus, Escobar had been partnered on the show with contestant Ace Greene, who is Black. Here’s how that selection went, according to Vulture: “The last to choose is Yulissa. I get the sense that someone once called her a ‘real firecracker’ and she’s been trying to live up to that ever since. She has clearly been waiting for an opportunity to cause trouble, so she aims her lips directly at Ace and they lock in. This goes on for a while.”

Before “Love Island USA” even premiered, fans and haters on social media were making plans to vote Escobar off as fast as they could. But the show beat them to it.

“Welcome back to ‘Love Island USA,’” narrator Iain Stirling said 18 minutes into the second episode of Season 7, which streamed Wednesday. “Yulissa has left the villa.” No other details were given.

“I can confirm Yulissa has left the villa,” a representative of the show told The Times on Thursday. No other details were given there either.

So viewers are left to connect the dots on their own — but seriously, those are some pretty huge, flashing-neon dots. Nobody needs that kind of attention, right? At least nobody in the reality TV business does.

The process to audition for “Love Island USA” seems fairly intense, with applicants asked off the bat for their social media usernames and quizzed as to whether they have an OnlyFans page or have ever done porn (sorry, they call it “Adult Film”).

The casting company also wants to know whether prospects have ever cheated on anyone, the location and meaning of any tattoos, whether they have any celebrity friends and whether their parents are still together.

There’s also this: “Is there any other information we should be made aware of concerning your application (including anything in your past that may attract negative press or publicity)? If YES, please provide details.”

Looks as if Escobar didn’t think her language was going to elicit negative publicity? But hey, Greene — who does have tattoos! — is now free to find fresh talent from among his remaining cast members.

As for that rocky premiere, “Love Island USA” fans got heated Tuesday when streamer Peacock posted on social media one minute after the planned showtime, “WE GOT A TEXT! Tonight’s episode will be slightly delayed. But it is worth the wait … Stay tuned!”

A full 40 minutes later, Season 7 got underway.