Love Island Australia 2026 cast revealed as Channel 9 heads to Fiji – Ten starting Islanders, four announced Bombs and six returning couples are set to shape season eight, which moves into the Love Island USA villa for the Australian show’s first season filmed at that Fiji location.
Love Island Australia begins on Monday, 26 October. New episodes arrive simultaneously across Australia at 10.00am AEDT on 9Now and screen at 8.30pm local time on Channel 9, Monday to Thursday. Sophie Monk is back as host, while Eoghan McDermott returns as narrator. The couple voted Australia’s favourites will compete for $50,000.
The shift to an established American villa is more than a backdrop change. It gives the Australian edition a larger, familiar setting while introducing returning Islanders who have already survived the format. Nine has named the six “Power Couples” who will influence the villa, but has not detailed the rules or the extent of their control. This guide separates the ten original arrivals from the four Bombs, so viewers can put names and faces to both groups before the premiere.
Who are the starting Islanders?
Five men and five women enter as the starting cast. Meet the starting Islanders below. Select a portrait or name to read about that contestant.
Starting men
Starting women
Lachie, 26 – Sydney
Lachie is a chiropractor from Sydney’s eastern suburbs who also models and creates online content. After studying chiropractic science in Townsville, he returned to Sydney’s social scene. He has been single for about three years and says the villa’s close quarters could move a genuine connection along faster than casual dating at home. Lachie describes himself as confident, carefree and fitness-focused. However, he says character, humility and good conversation matter more to him now than looks alone.
Jarrar, 22 – Wollongong
Wollongong’s Jarrar works as a fly-in, fly-out diesel fitter and also coaches people in fitness. Friends tease him about his resemblance to rugby league player Reece Walsh. He enjoys dirt bikes, rugby league and the gym, but says the show is about more than a holiday or attention. Having had three long-term relationships, he says he is open to something serious and intends to remain himself even when the villa tests him.
Jack, 24 – Gold Coast
Jack trains tradies in presentation, communication and sales. Originally from Townsville, he is a qualified electrician and refrigeration mechanic who now works largely in sales and is building a training business. His hobbies include surfing, boating, fishing, camping and four-wheel-driving. Jack says he joined the show to meet people outside his usual circle and hopes to find a long-term partner. He calls himself driven, spontaneous and charming.
Keanu, 25 – Sydney
Keanu moved from New Zealand to Australia at 17 and pursued rugby league with the North Queensland Cowboys and Newcastle Knights before moving into a trade. He describes himself as close to his family and says he can initially give off “red-flag energy” despite being softer-natured than he appears. For him, attraction may start a conversation, but a person’s character decides whether it continues. He plans to go into the villa with an open mind.
Oli, 26 – Perth
Perth personal trainer Oli says a photo taken by his grandmother unexpectedly brought him online attention. He describes his younger self as a nerdy, overweight kid and says that experience informs the more thoughtful side behind his current fitness career. He is looking for humour, personality and a genuine emotional connection. Oli says that if he finds someone he is truly interested in, he expects to focus on that relationship, although he is open to getting to know people respectfully first.
Shawnee, 27 – Gold Coast
Shawnee runs an online fitness-coaching business and works as a personal trainer. Nine’s profile says she has recently come out of an on-again, off-again relationship with a former Islander. She expects her high energy and frankness to be immediately noticeable in the villa, yet describes herself as an “extroverted introvert” who also needs quieter moments. Shawnee is drawn to people who can match her personality and says rudeness or a sense of superiority is an instant turn-off.
Phoebe, 23 – Adelaide and London
Phoebe has connections to Adelaide and London and calls herself a romantic who falls quickly. Her official profile describes her as currently “funemployed”, but she has commerce and film degrees and a strong theatre background: she says she has appeared in about 70 plays and 30 musicals. After previous dating experiences failed to produce the relationship she wanted, she sees the Fiji villa as a chance to try something very different and learn more about herself.
Amanda, 26 – Sydney
Sydney’s Amanda works part-time as a jeweller and model. She says she is looking beyond initial chemistry to compatibility, communication and a long-term relationship. Following the end of a five-and-a-half-year relationship, Amanda feels ready to meet someone who can match the person she has become. She says difficult conversations should be faced directly rather than avoided, and expects to pay attention to how the men communicate as much as how they look.
Natalie, 23 – Gold Coast
Natalie works in airline ground crew on the Gold Coast and grew up in Mackay. She says two previous serious relationships each lasted about three years, and hopes the next one will last longer. Her work has taught her to handle frustrated travellers and tense situations; in the villa, she expects to bring quick banter and a direct approach. Natalie says she falls hard and fast, so having several possible connections in one place will test her ability to spot a good match.
Layla, 22 – Canberra
Canberra’s Layla is a global learning manager and Pilates instructor who enjoys nights out and frequent trips to Sydney. She says a recent relationship ended shortly before a planned European holiday, leaving her cautious about opening up again. Layla wants a partner who is confident enough to keep pace with her energy but says her stronger exterior can conceal a kinder, funnier side. She sees the show as an opportunity to break out of an unsatisfying local dating routine.
Meet the four announced Bombs
Nine has also identified four additional contestants as “Bombs”. The announcement does not specify when each will enter or whom they will pursue. Their arrival is therefore a likely source of disruption, but the timing and outcomes remain for the series to reveal.
Select a portrait or name to jump to that Bomb’s profile.
The announced Bombs
Ava, 24 – Perth
Ava moved from Newcastle in England to Perth and now works as a traffic controller. She says she is looking for humour, energy and loyalty after difficult past relationships. Her work has given her practice dealing with attention and criticism, and she describes herself as fun, adventurous and spontaneous. Nine presents the self-described Geordie as someone who will speak her mind when she enters an established villa.
Jordan, 24 – Canberra
Jordan is a Canberra-based property and Airbnb owner with family ties to Tonga. Nine’s profile says his father is a former Tongan prime minister and that Jordan has spent about a decade in Canberra after attending school there. He travels frequently and says he is open to meeting everyone rather than fixing on one partner immediately. Jordan describes himself as charming, cheeky and confident, and expects to pursue a connection if one develops.
Zel, 29 – Gold Coast
Merizel, known as Zel, is a Gold Coast model and former footballer. He was in West Ham’s development squad before playing in Australia; injuries ended his playing career and modelling followed. Raised in the United Kingdom, he speaks English, Portuguese, Spanish and French. Zel says he is seeking someone who can balance boldness and kindness. He is not looking to be drawn into every argument, but his arrival could change relationships already forming inside the villa.
Sammi, 23 – Whangārei, New Zealand
Sammi is a model and content creator from Whangārei who grew up in South Africa and has held the Miss New Zealand title. She says dating opportunities in her hometown have been limited by travel and pageant commitments. A fan of games and outdoor adventures, she wants to look beyond her usual preference for athletes when she meets the men in Fiji. Sammi describes herself as direct, bubbly and loyal.
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What will the Power Couples do?
Six couples from previous Australian seasons return under the banner of “The Power Couples”: season four winners Claudia and Austen; season five winners Kale and Tyra; Georgia and Nate, also from season five; Eric and Kaylah from season six; season seven winners Kye and Yana; and Connor and Isabel from season seven.
Nine says these couples will “control” the season-eight villa and promises consequences for the new Islanders. It has not said exactly what decisions they will make, whether they will live in the villa, or how long they will appear. Their inclusion nevertheless gives the new cast a direct connection to relationships viewers have watched develop across four previous seasons.
Why the move to Fiji matters
This is the first Love Island Australia season to use the Love Island USA villa in tropical Fiji. The move gives the production a recognisable setting already associated with the wider franchise. It also provides a clear visual change for returning viewers without changing the central proposition: singles form and test relationships as the lineup evolves.
ITV creative director Alex Mavroidakis points to the location and cast as the season’s main draw. “We’ve filled the best Love Island villa in the world with the most unfiltered and flawless-looking cast of singles,” he said. That is his assessment of the new series; viewers will decide whether the expanded setting and returning couples deliver a stronger season.
Sophie Monk hosts for an eighth time. Her television career since Popstars has included The Bachelorette and Beauty and the Geek, while she also appeared on Love Island USA: Aftersun in Fiji in 2025. Eoghan McDermott returns to narrate the Australian edition, which ITV Studios Australia produces for the 9Network.
How to watch Love Island Australia and the Stan companion series
The main show starts Monday, 26 October, with episodes available at 10.00am AEDT on 9Now and shown at 8.30pm local time on Channel 9, Monday to Thursday. The 9Now release is a single national drop; the Channel 9 screening is at 8.30pm in each market. The 9Now release is earlier in the day than the television screening, so audiences need not wait until evening to see each new episode.
A separate companion series, Love Island Australia: Unseen. Uncut., also begins on 26 October. It is exclusive to Stan, not an alternative home for the main series. Nine says it will carry unseen footage and additional villa moments, with new instalments Monday to Thursday. The announcement does not give a precise Stan drop time.
Nine says season seven was its most-watched Love Island Australia season and drew a record number of finale votes. According to the network, its 9Now launch episode reached 680,000 viewers, while the 2025 season averaged 627,000 broadcast-video-on-demand viewers per episode and accumulated 959 million streaming minutes. Those network figures help explain why the next season pairs a high-profile villa move with an additional companion series.
For more TV Central coverage of the network, see our Channel 9 news archive. The official Love Island Australia page on 9Now has the public viewing information.