Love Island Games veteran Johnny Middlebrooks knows he left viewers divided with his approach to season 2, but he is standing behind his strategy — including that controversial Andreina Santos recoupling twist.
Us Weekly caught up with Johnny on Wednesday, October 8, shortly after he was voted off the show. He broke down why he believes he set the standard for how Love Island Games is played, where he stands with Andreina after that Instagram video and more.
Did you want to play the game differently this season compared to your last time on the show?
With my strategy this time, obviously my first season of Games [was divisive]. A lot of people will look at the way that I handled it and think it was super questionable. But to be real, I feel like I set the precedent on how to play the games. Find the best partner on my first season — and that’s what I was doing.
But you don’t think it was received that way by viewers?
People thought, “Oh, Johnny is just playing all the girls.” I was just trying to find the best partner. If I felt like the girl that I was with at that time wasn’t going to suit me in the finale, I just waited for the next girl that best suited me and that I thought was gonna help me compete in the finale.
It just so happened that I had three — I think it was two or three different couples. I ended up getting to the finale because I picked the best partner. If I didn’t pick those partners, maybe I would have gone home.
What about going into season 2?
Same thing. I was trying to find the best partner, and when I came in, I got lucky enough on the romance side, which is what I kept saying with Andreina and why we got coupled up. I came in and everyone told me, “Oh, my God, Lucinda killed her in her first duel and you should have seen it. It was so bad.”
I was like, “Look, I’m not going to come in here and not believe in her. I’m going to try and boost her up.” I was trying to support her and make her believe in herself because I was very attracted to her. And we did meet on the outside before.
And what was the history with that?
Nothing was, like, crazy. We just met a couple times and we shared a kiss on the outside. We intentionally did not take it far because I knew I was going on Games. But she didn’t tell me that she was going on Games. She knew I was going, but I didn’t know she was going.
She was just like, “You’re about to go film a show. I don’t want to get started with you before you go.” I was like, “OK I respect that.” I thought I was just waiting to maybe talk to her when I got back.
Then you saw her as one of the Islanders in season 2.
When I saw her on the show, I thought this is my chance to see what’s up. I took my opportunity to really get to know her. The whole problem was I’m trying [to] overlook the fact that she wasn’t really that good at challenges. I know you need to be good at the challenges because in my mind — at the very end — you’re going to get tested. Even if you can make it all the way through the season without having to go through tough challenges, you’re going to have to show your strength at the finale.
But you had doubts about making it to the end with Andreina?
When I was with her, my whole plan was, “Hey, if I can find somebody where I can develop a [romantic] connection, then cool. I’ll overlook the competitive side.” But when I gave her 10 days of putting all my eggs in her basket, I felt like the connection just wasn’t really there.
I told myself that the next opportunity I get to recouple up with someone else, I have to take it. With Games, any of the recouplings are designed to be kind of crazy.
Do you have any regrets about choosing a chance to switch up your couple?
I understood the implications of my actions. I understood what situation I was putting myself in and the situation I was putting Andreina in. I knew it was going to suck and I hated that it put Andreina in this position. But at the same time, it was the sacrifice I had to make because I knew that this is probably the last time I’m going to get a chance to recouple.
Everyone says, “You should have just waited a little bit. She was safe.” This is a game show. We all knew that we were on the last week and there’s no time to wait and see what happens. There [were] no more recouplings. I knew that because I’ve been here before. We have less than a week. If I stay with Andreina and there’s a challenge tomorrow, I could lose that challenge. Then how stupid would I feel [about] not going with my gut?
Since the U.K.’s Love Island originally debuted in 2002, several of the reality TV couples have stood the test of time. Love Island follows a different group of singles every season who have to pair off in order to stay in the show’s luxury villa. Thank You! You have successfully subscribed. Subscribe to newsletters Please […]
It was about the game before the love at that point.
Andreina and I were not good as a couple competing. We would have gone home. I was right when it came to the competition aspect that me and Gabby [Allen] won. It was the best thing possible. It was just that America hated what I did so much that I couldn’t get through with the vote. But realistically, when it came to the game, I made all the right decisions. America just didn’t see what I was saying.
What about your connection with Andreina?
I came in with a whole different mentality this time because I was not trying to have five different couples. I was looking past the fact that Andreina was not that great at all the competitions. But because the connection isn’t helping me overlook the lack of competitive edge that she didn’t have, I had to make the decision to pick the mystery box and that’s what I did.
It was tough for me to do and I knew that everyone’s going to be shocked. But for me, I’ve already told her that I feel like the conversations with her are kind of draining. I know that even [saying that] sounds a little bit harsh, but it’s true. The conversations were very surface level. We never really got off on the pace that I felt like we should have been on in 10 days [of] being with each other.
Do you think she saw your perspective?
She felt like it was, like, her lack of ability to open up. It’s not necessarily her lack of ability to open up. We were talking every single day for 10 days and we just didn’t really have that spark and that’s what I was saying to her. You only saw three minutes of a 40-minute conversation.
In my mind, she understood. When she said that she felt blindsided about my decision, I looked at her like, “Are you really blindsided right now? Are you really shocked? I just told you how I felt.”
So you feel like she knew it was coming?
I was actually shocked that she was acting as if she was blindsided. Because if roles are reversed and a girl told me, “Hey, I feel like you haven’t really been trying to get to know me. You haven’t really been asking questions about who I am as a person. I feel like the conversations have been draining for me and I feel like I’ve been facilitating most of the conversations we’ve been having.” After hearing all that, I wouldn’t be so shocked that she picked the opportunity to recouple up with a new person.
Because this isn’t just about love but also about the games.
Andreina wasn’t really that great at challenges. We’re literally at Love Island Games and I think people forget about the fact that Love Island Games is such a huge part of it. We have to compete together. She told me that she wasn’t focused on the games. She didn’t really care about the games. So it was all on me and she’s just following my lead.
I’m getting blamed, but you have somebody that you’re coupled up with that is telling you she doesn’t really care about the games at all. What am I supposed to do with that? Not take my opportunity to recouple up with someone [else]? Luckily with Gabby, she really cared about the games. So that’s why I keep saying I stand on my decision.
I just hate that I did hurt Andreina’s feelings in making that decision, but all of the recouplings were designed to stir the pot and create some conflict and drama within the show. Unfortunately, I think that the people that I was working with were the only ones that kind of took advantage of the recouplings to benefit our game. It came back to bite us in the ass because it just made us look crazy.
Do you think you would have won if not for the fan vote?
I think within the villa, people understood what I was doing to some degree. Especially after I had a conversation with them. So I think that America’s vote definitely did play a huge role in how I fared in the game because I got all the way up to the point where I was just waiting on America to send me to the finale.
The American vote was huge. The thing that I think a lot of people don’t realize is, like, we’re living 24 hours out of the day. You guys are hearing two minutes of a conversation, yet we’re there with each other for 24 hours. They don’t really understand that there’s so much more that happens within 24 hours.
So of course America’s vote was my defining moment in the show. If they saw my side, they would have sent me to the finale. But they didn’t. So I didn’t get a chance to show people what I was made of.
There was a moment in the season where Sydney [Paight] said we would see you in every season of Love Island Games. Thoughts?
I’m never going to say never to anything when it comes to coming back on Love Island Games or Love Island in general. If I’m counting right, I did six TV shows. It’s just so funny because this is Sydney’s third Love Island.
When it comes to my game and just me being there, people project a lot toward what they think that I am. They attach themselves to my reputation when it comes to Love Island. That’s what I was dealing with a lot in the show is my reputation when it comes to Love Island like that.
Why would any of us not take an opportunity to come back [to] such a great franchise? First of all, I have bills to pay. I have a child to feed. I don’t think that people realize that we get paid to go on these shows regardless of whether we win or not. So of course, I’m going to take this paycheck, and of course, I’m going to try and win $250,000 to put some food in my child’s belly.
If they want to take me on 80 seasons of Love Island for the next 80 years, I’m going to come back because they’re paying me good money to go on your TV screens to entertain you guys.
Where do you stand with Andreina now?
I knew when we were on the show that I was going to see her in five days — regardless [of] whether I made a decision or not. I think that she kind of played into the whole thing and was very upset about everything. But I knew that she wasn’t actually that upset. I knew that as soon as I saw her outside, things were going to be OK. That was exactly what happened.
How was your first meeting since the villa?
We linked up with the whole cast at the hotel in Fiji and everything was cool with her. We spent a lot of time with each other as soon as we got out.
I’m not gonna do too much kissing and telling. I already went online and posted a little video of her in my hotel room that everyone’s so upset about. But I really posted that to show everyone that she did her big one with making it seem like she would never talk to me again. She thought I was the worst person in the whole entire world. But I knew that’s not actually how she felt. We were cool. She very much instantly forgave me.
And you are on good terms now?
As much as she talked down on my name, she didn’t publicly want to admit that [she] and I are actually just cool. The decision that I’d made in the show was based solely off the game and she understands that. So when I actually saw [her] in real life, all that kind of just got swept under the rug. We are just cool to this day. It’s just one of those things where [there’s] public pressure to maintain the idea that we’re not on good terms.
But you have seen the backlash.
She texted me yesterday morning — in spite of everything that was posted — and asked how I was. Everything is cool with us. Our connection in the show wasn’t strong enough for me to overlook the idea that I didn’t think that we could win together in the challenges. The one thing that I just didn’t highlight was how America is going to have an opinion on the way that I switched up on her to pick a new partner. And they didn’t allow me to go [to] the finale.
I should have known that going [in]to the show because I know how America feels about me. America’s vote was my Achilles heel going into this season.
