CNN

The ‘Love Island’ cast keeps making terrible messes

<i>Getty Images via CNN Newsource</i><br/>Huda Mustafa and Olandria Carthen.

By CNN Newsource

Published November 3, 2025 6:33 pm

By Lisa Respers France, CNN

(CNN) — “Love Island USA” season 7 continues to bring the drama even months after the season concluded.

Huda Beauty has ended its relationship with one of the show’s alums, Huda Mustafa (who is not related to the company, despite the names).

The split came after a recent live stream in which Mustafa and her boyfriend, Louis Russell, laughed following a viewer calling her fellow “Love Island USA” contestant Olandria Carthen a racial slur.

The pair quickly ended the call with Mustafa saying, “Yo, what the f**k? What did they say? They said a bad word” to which Russell, who was a contestant on Netflix’s “Too Hot To Handle” and “Perfect Match,” responded “They said a terrible word.”

The moment went viral and the popular beauty brand recently posted on social media that “At Huda Beauty, kindness and humanity are at the heart of what we do.”

“We are truly disappointed by Huda Mustafa’s recent live and we take all forms of racism very seriously,” the statement reads. “While we don’t believe her actions reflect her character, we found them deeply upsetting.”

The company captioned their two page statement “This action was taken not because of any creator or influencers content, this was taken due to the lack of seriousness around the issue and to people close to us who were offended by the actions during the live. Please remember this is about accountability not canceling people.”

Prior to Huda Beauty’s statement both Mustafa and Russell issued apologies.

But it was Mustafa’s first statement posted on her Instagram stories that caused the hubbub to escalate. To some, it sounded like she was down-playing the incident, by saying she and Russell “did not hear it very well” when the person used the slur.

A second statement, also posted on her stories, acknowledged that she had initially missed the mark with her first statement and offered a direct apology to Carthen.

“I want to begin by saying I completely respect Olandria and it’s extremely disheartening that anyone, especially a presumed child, would find it excusable to use this type of language, and doing so only underlines the ignorance of the gravity that such a word carries. Olandria – it is now clear that this comment was targeted at you, and I apologize for my immediate reaction,” Mustafa wrote. “My reaction in that moment came from being caught off guard, not from finding the word or situation funny. It was a nervous, uncomfortable reaction that I recognize was inappropriate.”

Russell also issued a statement writing “I’d like to extend my sincerest apology to all those affected by the caller who used language that completely goes against everything we stand for.”

“As a Black man, I have a greater empathy through my own lived experiences battling racism and the idea that a flustered response to a very unnerving situation could be misinterpreted for me not taking the matter seriously is incredibly disheartening,” he wrote. “This was an extremely unfortunate situation, one that in no way reflects my values, not Huda’s.”

Carthen also took to social media to express her feelings, writing that she does not “condone racism of any kind, nor do I entertain it.”

“That kind of language is never acceptable,” she wrote. “Not in anger, not as a joke, not ever. Words like that carry generations of pain, and pretending otherwise only keeps the cycle going. Defending it, laughing about it, or making excuses is even worse.”

Carthen encouraged her followers “to donate to organizations dedicated to educating and uplifting the Black community like UNCF, NAACP and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund.”

It was not the first time that Mustafa and Carthen have faced off regarding racism.

During the reunion show which aired in August, Carthen took Mustafa to task for not better addressing Mustafa’s followers who had been racist towards Carthen.

A rep for Mustafa told CNN via email on Monday, “We are deeply disappointed by the decision and are happy with the impact the campaign had.”

CNN has reached out to Russell and Carthen for comment.

“Love Island USA” is a spinoff of the popular UK series which seeks to link couples up to find love. Carthen and the man she ended up with, Nic Vansteenberghe, became break out stars and were the runner- ups for season 7.