Love Island USA‘s Nic Vansteenberghe has broken his silence on Cierra Ortega‘s racial slur scandal!
As Perezcious readers know, Nic’s strongest connection Cierra was removed from the island once it was revealed she used a racist slur aimed at Asians in resurfaced posts. They’d just closed things off, so it was particularly dramatic for the nurse, who quickly moved on with Olandria Carthen. The couple were so loved that they came in second place!
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While appearing on the Chicks in the Office podcast on Tuesday, the reality star revealed what went down in the villa when the 25-year-old was kicked off. We’ve heard from ex-contestant Zak Srakaew that the cast was informed Cierra had “broken some of the policies” of the show but that nobody knew the full extent of the controversy. But what’s Nic’s version of the story??
The model recalled feeling “lost and confused” at first because he had “no idea” why she was kicked out. He said he was first told Cierra had to leave for a “personal” reason — which is honestly pretty ominous considering that implies something is wrong, not that she did something wrong, you know?! He said:
“She just left. It was a completely normal day. She just left. And then I was brought and told that she was gone for, I think it was some sort of personal reasons, something along those lines. Very vague. Was never told the details of anything.”
Naturally, he considered leaving the villa with her. They’d just closed things off, after all! He pointed out:
“I was like, ‘Okay, this is someone I’m closed off with. This is someone I have a really close relationship with,’ and I was definitely strongly considering leaving.”
Whoa!!!
That would have really changed the season! Nic was a fan favorite, and to have him leave amid an already super controversial season could’ve really ruined everything!
It sounds like when producers realized they might lose him too, they filled him in about the situation more because he soon realized associating himself with Cierra might not be the best thing for his image. He continued:
“And then I had a talk with myself and, you know, and behind the scenes kind of stuff. And I also told myself, ‘if whatever is happening in the outside world is something I don’t align with, then that could be perceived as me supporting that.’ So, I gave myself the chance to kinda stay in the villa and then coming out now, seeing what it is and whether or not those values believe in what I value, it’s like, now I can have a better perception on it and, you know, come into the space of more knowledge to think about it.”
He’s still gathering his thoughts before releasing a more formal statement on the matter, he acknowledged:
“It’s been a lot. It’s been overwhelming. I’m still taking the time to like process everything that I’ve been seeing.”
That said, he still has a lot of respect for Cierra. When the hosts pointed out lots of fans thought he never liked Cierra as much as he did Olandria, mostly based on his facial expressions and vibe around the women, the 24-year-old replied:
“I think regardless of what Cierra’s ever said, I think that she’s someone who has feelings and someone who I had feelings for.”
Though, he did go on to admit that maybe fans were onto something about his looks. Oof! On whether or not he thinks he’ll have a conversation with Cierra now that they’re both back from Fiji, he candidly expressed:
“That’s something that I’m still taking the time to process. I’m still taking the time to process. […] But that’s something that I need to sit down and kind of figure out.”
Cierra has apologized for her offensive language and insisted she has no hard feelings toward Nic or Olandria. The cast will get back together for a reunion on August 25, but it’s unclear if Cierra will be invited due to the scandal. We’ll have to wait and see if these exes ever talk things out…
Hear everything Nic had to say on his Love Island experience and this controversy (below):
Thoughts??
[Image via Peacock & Chicks in the Office/YouTube]
The post <i>Love Island USA</i>’s Nic Discusses Cierra’s Racial Slur Scandal & What He Was Told When She Left! appeared first on Perez Hilton.