‘Love Island USA’ Star Leah Kateb Denies Rumored “Blow Up” At The Reunion: “They Don’t Even Deserve Me”

With the highly anticipated Love Island USA Season 6 reunion set to premiere on Peacock Monday (Aug. 19), rumors swirled that breakout star Leah Kateb suffered a major “blow up” while filming – a claim that she vehemently denied on TikTok.

Kateb commented on a video someone shared outlining the alleged drama that went down during the reunion shoot.

“No ‘blow up’ happened at the reunion,” she wrote in a comment, per Deadline . “Yall make any n everything up.”

She continued, “I’m exhausted mentally physically and spiritually from this entire experience. I’m tired. I told them I am DONE after reunion.”

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She later doubled down in another comment, writing, “That’s all they were getting from me. Respectfully. Everything else I just can’t and they don’t even deserve me. Period moving on.”

And it looks like she’s making good on that promise. Though Kateb has done several rounds of interviews since leaving the villa, the Love Island USA breakout star was notably missing from a panel the stars did at 92NY last Friday (Aug. 16).

Kateb has become a breakout star from the season despite placing second alongside her bombshell beau, Miguel Harichi. She now boasts 3.1 million followers on Instagram.

But she’s been open about how much she struggled with her experience in the villa.

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“I was having a very tough time in the villa,” Kateb revealed on Call Her Daddy . “There were times where I pulled head production aside and I said, ‘I don’t want to be here any more.'” She revealed production had a mental health counselor on staff to offer psych counseling to contestants. Kateb claimed she was once called in to speak with them three times in one day because she was struggling with the show.

After being sequestered in Fiji for six weeks filming Love Island USA , which became the most-watched reality show season in streaming history, the cast was met with an overwhelming media circus on the outside, buoyed by countless interviews, public appearances and revelatory TikToks from co-stars who were ready to tell all.

But the attention quickly turned toxic as fans began taking sides on social media, resulting in cyberbullying. The Love Island USA social media account has since issued a statement reminding fans to be “uplift rather than criticize” the cast.

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The show later issued another statement ahead of the reunion premiere, seemingly hinting that it may stir up even more drama. “The reunion is full of drama, but remember – these are real people, so let’s keep it kind and positive,” the statement warns. “Let’s end the season with the same love and respect we started with!”

The reunion was filmed in New York City on Aug. 14. Filming reportedly lasted from 1 p.m. to midnight that day, likely due to drama-related delays, which means there’s a lot that fans won’t even get to see when the one-hour reunion premieres on Peacock this evening.

Speaking to Teen Vogue , JaNa Craig said she hopes Kateb gets the apology she deserves.

“Yeah everyone that owes Leah an apology, I hope that gets aired,” Craig said. “Connor [Newsum] never gave me an apology. Coye apologized, I hope y’all get to see that one.”

She continued, “But everyone that painted Leah to be a villain, I hope their apologies air. I hope you get to see it.”

Love Island USA Season 6 reunion airs on Peacock Aug. 19 at 9/8C.

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