19 March 2023 , 14:14
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Love Island's social media ban could be the end of the show as we know it, claims a fashion insider.
The stars of the current series have left the villa with underwhelming numbers of Instagram followers after a change in rules stopped them from building their social media presence while on the ITV2 show.
Last week Pretty Little Thing - who signed Molly-Mae Hague and Gemma Owen from the show - revealed they will not sign anyone from the most recent series.
And now insiders claim budding influencers are put off applying for the next series as they miss out on big money deals.
It's been claimed that the number of singletons applying for the show have already "slumped" following the latest series.
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(ITV/REX/Shutterstock)"There are fewer applicants for Love Island this summer," a source tells Daily Mail.
"The ban has exposed what we all know: that the show is all about landing lucrative deals, not finding love."
A spokesman for ITV told the Mirror: "Love Island is primarily about people looking for love."
This year's winners Kai Fagan and Sanam Harrinanan, had 173,000 and 153,000 Instagram followers respectively the day after they left the villa last week.
Meanwhile, Gemma Owen finished the summer series last year with over a million followers – after gaining 920,000 while her family ran her Instagram account during the show.
(ITV)None of this year's contestants have left the villa with more than a million followers on Instagram.
The closest is Jessie Renee Wynter with 709,000 - although she previously appeared on the Australian version of the show before a social media ban was in place.
Her boyfriend Will Young has 499,000 followers but was already a hit on social media before he entered the villa.
This year's contestants will reunite on ITV2 tonight for the reunion episode.
The one-off special will see host Maya Jama interview contestants and track the finalists as they leave the villa and reunite with their loved ones.
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Love Island: The Reunion is set to air on Sunday on ITV2 and ITVX from 9pm.