Cierra Ortega's abrupt departure from Love Island USA due to a personal matter shocked fans, especially after she and Nic Vansteenberghe had just become exclusive. Nic's seemingly unfazed reaction fueled speculation,

Cierra's exit came after a resurfaced post from her social media showed her using a racial slur. Following offscreen backlash, Cierra was removed from Fiji - similar to Yulissa Escobar, who was the first Islander removed from the villa earlier this season after clips of her using racial slurs on a podcast circulated online.