After leaving the villa, Love Island USA’s Austin Shepard answered some burning questions — and weighed in on the online debate about Ace Greene’s height.
Austin was asked in his TikTok comments on Saturday, July 5, whether he could “confirm or deny” Ace’s height, to which he replied, “5’6 on a good day.” Austin subsequently liked several messages and memes poking fun at Ace being shorter than he said he was on the show.
Ace’s height became a topic of conversation after the Stand On Business challenge when he got into an argument with Austin.
“One of us — out of the two — is 6’5 and one of us is 5’10 and has the balls to say some s*** around here because I have some heart,” Ace fired back at Austin during the Tuesday, July 1, episode. “You don’t.”
Viewers questioned whether Ace was potentially a shorter height based on how he compared to the other Islanders. He has yet to elaborate since he is still in the villa with no access to a phone or knowledge of what the public has been saying about his time on the show.
Austin, meanwhile, has since left Fiji and been brought up to speed. After getting access back to his social media, Austin answered an Instagram Q&A where a fan asked whether he was a “racist bigot.”
“I’m going to give this attention only one time because this is, like, crazy,” Austin said in his response video on Saturday. “Are you f***ing dumb? Like, honestly, are you dumb? Do you not think?”
Austin used one of his tattoos as proof, adding, “I have a Black woman tatted on my side. Use your head.”
After his explanation wasn’t well-received, Austin clarified with a more formal statement.
“I want to take a moment to address my recent repost that has caused offense to some of you,” he wrote via his Instagram Stories. “As you all know, I have a very dry sense of humor, and I genuinely didn’t think before sharing that content. It was never my intention to hurt or upset anyone. I value and respect all individuals and their perspectives.”
Austin acknowledged a since-deleted repost on his social media account.
“I recognize that my choice of content did not resonate well with everyone, and for that, I sincerely apologize,” he added. “I’m committed to learning from this experience and to being more mindful in the future. Thank you for your understanding and for holding me accountable. Love you all [and] thank you so much for an incredible experience.”
Earlier this season, Yulissa Escobar was another Islander who apologized after clips of her using racial slurs on a podcast circulated online. She was removed from the villa two episodes into the season and then Cierra Ortega was also pulled once a resurfaced post of her using a slur went viral.
New episodes of Love Island USA will be released six days a week — except for Wednesdays — on Peacock.
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