Yulissa Escobar is detailing her abrupt exit from Love Island USA.
One month after her sudden departure from the Peacock series due to online backlash she received for using racial slurs in resurfaced podcast appearances, the reality star clarified what actually happened when she left the villa after just two episodes.
“Plot twist: I wasn’t dragged out in the dark,” Yulissa captioned a July 3 TikTok video. “I walked out in broad daylight head high, lashes on.”
While shutting down online rumors that she was quietly removed while the other islanders were asleep, the 27-year-old went on to share her side of the story.
“I did not wake up in the middle of the night,” she said. “They didn’t drag my ass out of bed.”
In fact, the day started out just like any other—with her costar Ace Greene making her breakfast.
Adding that she felt she was just “getting comfortable and just coming out of my shell,” Yulissa recalled that she and the guys were plotting to spice things up with a friendly game of spin the bottle. But production had other plans.
“I can’t tell you the time because we don’t have access to the real world,” she explained. “I had gotten called to the front and then I met one of the producers and they asked me to take my mic off.”
At that point, the Miami native knew something serious was about to ensue.
“I honestly got scared,” she recounted. “I thought something happened with a family member or something. They didn’t really tell me anything. They just said that a video resurfaced on the internet and it’s not looking too good. I didn’t really know what video or what I was saying or what I did.”
After waiting to get her phone back for another two days while her episodes were airing, she finally discovered that the videos that resurfaced featured her using the N-word on various podcasts while discussing past relationships.
“I was like, ‘Holy s–t. No way,” she said. “I get it. I said a word that I should have not said. But I wish I would have never said that. It is what it is. I can’t go back in time. I am sorry that I said that word.”
To learn more about the islanders looking for love on season seven of Love Island USA, keep reading.
(E! News and Peacock are part of the NBCUniversal family.)
Bryan Arenales
Boston, Massachusetts
Elan Bibas
Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada
Courtney “CoCo” Watson
Los Angeles, California
Clarke Carraway
Columbia, South Carolina
Chris Seeley
Fresno, California
Zak Srakaew
Roi Et, Thailand
Zac Woodworth
Portland, Utah
JD Dodard
Dallas, Texas
Jaden Duggar
Los Angeles, California
Gracyn Blackmore
Bristol, Virginia
Savanna “Vanna” Einerson
Salt Lake City, Utah
Andreina Santos
Thomas John “TJ” Palma
Pleasantville, New York
Belle-A Walker
Honolulu, Hawaii
Austin Shepard
Northville, Michigan
Ace Greene
Los Angeles, California
Chelley Bissainthe
Orlando, Florida
Huda Mustafa
Raleigh, North Carolina
Nicolas Vansteenberghe
Jacksonville, Florida
Jeremiah Brown
Los Angeles, California
Olandria Carthen
Decatur, Alabama
Yulissa Escobar
Miami, Florida
Taylor Williams
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Cierra Ortega
Phoenix, Arizona
Charlie Georgiou
Birmingham, United Kingdom
