Love Island’s Amaya shares rare look into background check after Titi restraining order drama

People have been wondering just how rigorous the Love Island USA background check is after several villa members have been removed and the whole Titi drama.

It feels like every year someone gets cut from the Love Island lineup after viewers find proof of them making some sort of bigoted remark or a controversial opinion. This year, Alannah was booted after a video of her singing the n-word in a song was spread across socials. Then, people dug up an alleged restraining order against Titi, who apparently threatened a 16-year-old as a 17-year-old.

But season seven winner Amaya has clarified that the Love Island background check is actually very thorough.

“Love Island did a crazy background check on me; they even pulled up a car ticket from years ago that I didn’t even know I had and needed to pay it off before entering the villa,” she said on her X account.

In the replies, she continued: “I had to pay it off, or else they weren’t going to let me into the villa; it was that serious. Everyone goes through severe background checks before entering the show, but no process is foolproof.”

Love island did a crazy background check on me, they even pulled up a car ticket from years ago I had that I didn’t even know I had & needed to pay it off before entering the villa 😭🤣

— Amaya Papaya 💕 (@dominicanabratz) July 2, 2026

Besides any criminal or law-related issues, the Love Island casting process includes a social media background check, but they also expect Islanders to wipe their social media accounts of  “anything racist, sexist or homophobic”, according to an insider who spoke to the Daily Mail.

Of course, this doesn’t guarantee a clean slate, as we saw with Alannah.

“It’s frustrating and annoying,” the casting insider continued. “We tell them to go through their social media to make sure there isn’t a problem.”

They continued: “Sometimes we have to trust that [contestants] understand what’s acceptable and what’s not”, and that “everyone involved in the show is annoyed at her and at the situation right now, but it is what it is.”

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