On August 25, the Love Island USA season 7 reunion finally aired and brought all of this year’s Islanders back to Peacock. Among all the re-ignited feuds, unaired footage, and searing questions from host Andy Cohen, the special left viewers with one big question: Who is Huda Mustafa dating now, and why is she bringing up Netflix?
As a cohort of way-too-online reality TV fans already know, season 7 cast member Huda may have found love with a new man after leaving the villa single, following her mid-finale breakup with Chris Seeley. Despite having already gone public with her new beau, Huda did not address her new relationship during the reunion. She instead mentioned “legal reasons” and claimed, “It’s Netflix, I’m not allowed to talk about it.”
For LIUSA viewers who don’t have time to trudge through another show’s lore for all the tea, below, read on for everything you need to know about Huda Mustafa’s love life post-season 7.
You may like
From left: Chris Seeley, Bryan Arenales, Amaya Espinal, and Huda Mustafa at the season 7 reunion.
(Image credit: Jocelyn Prescod/PEACOCK)
Who is Huda Mustafa dating after ‘Love Island USA’ season 7?
Just days after Huda left the season 7 villa, she was spotted out and about in L.A. holding hands with Louis Russell, a 24-year-old mainstay of Netflix’s Reality Universe who recently appeared on Perfect Match season 3. Two weeks later, Huda and Louis stepped out for their first public appearance together; on July 31, they walked the red carpet holding hands at the premiere of the horror movie Weapons.
The new couple made waves for several reasons. On the Netflix side of things, Huda and Louis’s red-carpet outing took place the night before Perfect Match‘s season 3 premiere. By debuting his new relationship, Louis was essentially spoiling the season for fans tuning in to see whether his showmance with The Ultimatum alum Sandy Gallagher would turn into an off-camera relationship.
It’s possible that the streaming giant was not too happy with him about the big reveal. Though Netflix didn’t give an official statement, Sandy did call Louis out for the red-carpet appearance. During an episode of the podcast “The Viall Files,” she said, “It was very disrespectful to the cast, to myself, to production, and most importantly to the audience.”
Louis Russell and Huda Mustafa at the Weapons premiere.
(Image credit: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
What do ‘Love Island USA’ fans need to know about Louis Russell?
Serial dating show alum Louis Russell has appeared in at least one reality show per year since his TV debut in 2023, including two seasons in a row of Too Hot to Handle. This year, he was in Perfect Match, Netflix’s competition show Battle Camp, and the currently-airing(!) British series Celebs Go Dating. As a TV persona, Louis is known for being a ladies’s man whose youth, cockiness, and wandering eye get the best of him (and of course, he makes great TV).
Louis actually had a connection to Love Island USA before he met Huda. The former semi-pro football player was previously friends with season 6 finalist Miguel Harichi, before they fell out earlier this summer.
Louis Russell and Sandy Gallagher in Perfect Match.
(Image credit: Courtesy of Netflix)
Has Netflix responded to its mention during the ‘Love Island USA’ season 7 reunion?
Though Love Island USA fans didn’t get a Huda-Louis hard launch during the season 7 reunion, we did get a surprising new feud in the reality TV streets: Andy Cohen v. Netflix. After Huda claimed that Netflix wouldn’t let her speak about her and Louis’s relationship, the longtime Bravo host ended his questioning by adding, “Tell Netflix this was the No. 1 streaming show of the summer.”
While Netflix doesn’t have a de facto spokesperson like Peacock (by way of Bravo), the streamer did respond. Soon after the reunion aired, Netflix’s official X/Twitter account changed its bio to read, “DON’T @ ME IDK!!!”
(Image credit: Screenshot/@netflix)
Besides that chef’s kiss response, it’s unclear what Netflix’s place is in all this. Did they really send a cease-and-desist to keep Louis and Huda from speaking out about their romance? Couldn’t Huda have talked about it anyway, since the season 7 reunion aired a full week after Perfect Match ended? Have Louis and Huda booked a Netflix reality gig? As with all reality couples’s trajectories post-filming, only time will tell.
TOPICS
Reality TV
Netflix
