‘Influencers are off the table’: Love Is Blind reveals exactly how it casts people for the show

The team behind Love Is Blind has revealed exactly what it looks for when creating a cast for the show, and what type of people it looks out for to create perfect pod daters. If you’re an influencer looking for a big break, look away now.

Over the years of Love Is Blind, there have been cast members who have been called out for being fame hungry, on the show for the wrong reasons, and then in more recent seasons cast members have admitted to having girlfriends the entire time. Trevor, we will never forgive you.

Now, speaking with Variety, the team behind the casting has said it tries harder than ever to prevent people with the wrong intentions from getting on the show, and has said certain people will get overlooked if it looks as though they aren’t genuine in wanting to find the love of their life.

via Netflix

“In a lot of unscripted shows, I think that a lot of times, you’re looking for someone who’s a certain kind of character with a certain charisma. We do not do that. We are not leading with that,” said Love Is Blind creator and Kinetic Content CEO Chris Coelen. “We’re looking for people who are genuine.”

For the US version of the show, casting begins in a certain city or state, and then the casting team does some outreach, to get the word out about the show on a local level. For the UK version of the show, this happened across the country.

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Speaking of the sort of people Love Is Blind wants to cast, Donna Driscoll, exec VP of casting and talent for Kinetic Content said: “We want reporters, politicians, realtors, salon owners, pastors, nurses, teachers and everyone in between. We want there to be a huge buzz around the city that we’re there and we’re looking for singles who are ready for a deep and meaningful relationship and marriage.”

via Netflix

Chris Coelen added that they want to get the word out to people who might not have previously thought of applying, and then after this “we put everybody through the same process and same filter as we narrow down the pool of people.”

The show has become more popular over the years, and people will have seen some of the cast members go on to gain huge Instagram followings and have major career success. So, now the team will try its best to narrow out anyone wanting to join the Love Is Blind cast for these reasons.

“Influencers and actors are off the table,” Donna Driscoll said. “I want the people to come in and feel very authentic and raw — and that’s not to say that an influencer, model or actor could not do that. But I want to steer clear of getting somebody into the pod, as much as I possibly can, for the wrong reasons. With somebody who is an influencer … I’m really hesitant to go down that road just because I want to make sure that their heart is in the right place.”

Addressing that Trevor Soa still managed to get into the cast, despite having a girlfriend outside the pods, Donna said: “We did our due diligence with every single step. The thing that makes me upset is that it took someone else’s spot who could have been there for the right reasons.

“We have to trust that all of what they’re telling us is true. Will all of our eyes be a lot more open after Trevor? Absolutely.”

The first season of Love Is Blind UK is available on Netflix now. For all the latest Netflix news, drops, quizzes and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook. 

Related stories recommended by this writer:

• A look inside the intense casting questionnaire and application process for Love Is Blind

• Love Is Blind UK’s Nicole was on Come Dine With Me before Netflix, and sang for her guests

• Love Is Blind UK’s Sam speaks out about £10k nose job transformation before the show