SPOILERS are ahead for Love Is Blind Season 8, which is now streaming with a Netflix subscription.
While there’s a growing amount of LGBTQ+ dating shows on streaming, Netflix’s most popular reality show has yet to open up its concept to the queer community, and the Love Is Blind format makes this difficult. However, Season 8’s Madison Errichiello shared post-reunion that her queer community was very much present on the gal side of the pods.
While the latest season of the Netflix series did show one moment where Brittany came out as bisexual to Devin in the pods before they broke things off, apparently the show glossed over the fact that Madison was openly bisexual in the pods. While we know what went down between her and Alex after Season 8 ended, we had no idea about this funny story about Madison and one of the other girls. As Madison shared:
So actually, I knew one of the girls. She didn’t get a lot of screentime. She was there for like a day and she left, and I mean good for her because you know, she was so unimpressed. But it’s so funny because actually, I show up at the airport and we’re all kind of meeting each other for the first time. And I was like, I matched with that girl on Hinge like a year ago.
When Madison went on the Off The Vine With Kaitlyn Bristowe podcast this week, the Love Is Blind star revealed that she had a coincidental thing happen when she met the girls for the Season 8 pods. One of the other girls, who really wasn’t featured on the show, was one of her past matches on the dating app, Hinge. As she continued:
At first I was just kind of nervous, like the gay panic set in, and I was like ‘Ahh.' I was like ‘Oh my god, do I say something? Do I not?’ And I just ended up saying something, because I also didn’t know how comfortable she was, so I didn’t want to say anything on camera either. So, I just said something I think the next day at breakfast. I was like ‘Hey, we matched on Hinge, right?’ and she was like ‘Oh my god, yeah! That’s where I know you from.’
This story was also confirmed on the other gal’s end, while speaking at an event for MPR News. Casandra Barron recalled the same exact story. Here’s how Madison continued to clarify what became of the missed connection moment:
Her name is Casandra, and she’s one of my besties now. It’s so funny because I remember being like ‘Hey, if this doesn’t work out'... But no, we’re just besties because she kind of had a thing, like she was on and off with this one guy, so I think when she got to the pods, she was like ‘Oh, like I miss him.’
While things didn’t work out romantically between Madison and Casandra despite their reconnection, the Love Is Blind cast member shared that she’s openly bisexual and even discussed her sexuality while on dates on the show, but it was completely cut from the season. In the same MPR interview, cast member Vanessa Boreland shared that there was “queer representation” reflected in the participants but she found it to be “really unfortunate” that it barely came up in the season.
While I know I was more optimistic for Season 8 going into it, it proved to be just as messy as Season 7 given how all the stories featured shook out. There’s always next season, I guess… considering the show has been renewed for 9 and 10. Too bad the show isn't too LGBTQ+ friendly or some of the queer contestants could have had a larger dating pool!
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