By Arushi Jacob
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Peacock Ten days into Season 8 of “Love Island USA,” Paralympian and now ex-islander Beatriz Hatz was sent home after her couple was put to the test with a nationwide vote. Hatz’s partner, Gabriel Vasconcelos, was made to couple up with bombshell and newcomer Jennifer “Jen” Terry after America decided which contestant each of the three new bombshells (Terry, Sol Dean, and Caleb McDaniel) should couple up with. “I wasn’t surprised once I saw what was going on [in the villa], it was pretty clear,” Hatz tells Variety. “I was like, ‘All right, I’m going home.'” Hatz and Vasconcelos were initially paired up on Day 2 when Hatz — then in a couple with fellow ex-islander Sean Reifel — signaled she was open to exploring outside her connection. Vasconcelos then stole Hatz and Trinity Tatum away for a date night, where he connected with the former. Hatz and Vasconcelos ran into problems of their own, when their connection was tested by the arrivals of Terry and Dean, both of whom Vasconcelos made out with outside of challenges. An OG islander, Hatz also quickly struck up friendships with the rest of the women, but hit a snag with Melanie Moreno in Episode 4, when Hatz told Moreno she was hogging a new bombshell’s time and attention, resulting in disagreement between the girls and Moreno’s now popular line: “Gimme 10.” After the pair made up, they ran into solo hurdles in Episode 9 when Corbin Mims, Hatz and Moreno were all left single and vulnerable after their respective partners were coupled up with the new bombshells. As the sole single man, Mims got to choose which islander he wanted to pair with and picked Moreno, causing Hatz to be dumped from the island. In the episodes since, Vasconcelos and Terry’s relationship has picked up steam (the two seemingly had sex in Episode 13), while Hatz’s friends Tatum and Kayda Bosse debate how supportive they should be of the new relationship. The show has also exploded in popularity yet again, with Variety reporting that Season 8’s debut had a 74% increase compared to the initial three-day total of minutes watched for the Season 7 premiere. And with extra eyes, comes a new wave of online commentary and criticism. “I’ve gotten messages about ‘We want you and your one leg out of the villa,’ or random stuff like that,” Hatz says. “OK, be more creative if you’re gonna make fun of me.” Below, Hatz talked to Variety about her friendship with Moreno, how she feels about Vasconcelos’ new coupling — and her largely unaired connection with McDaniel.
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