Love Island star Ellie Chadwick has reportedly left her fellow contestants 'devastated' by making a sudden and unexpected exit from the show. The 24-year-old real estate videographer had been participating in the hit ITV2 reality dating series and was enjoying a blossoming romance with Finley Maddock. However, things took a turn when Finley fell for a bombshell who entered the villa.
Reason Behind Ellie's Exit
It has now emerged that Ellie's decision to quit the programme entirely reportedly stemmed from hearing the results of a viewer poll for favourite boy and favourite girl, even though she was not dumped by the public. A source told The Sun: 'Viewers have seen Ellie threatening to leave across recent episodes, so the news of her now quitting won’t feel like a surprise. But in real time, her and Fin reconnected at the recoupling a few days ago so her decision to now leave is a shock. Viewers will see the dramatic action play out in an episode soon.'
The reality star had threatened to quit before, when it looked like Finley had begun to take an interest in Elicia Bailey. In Tuesday night's episode she was apparently back together with him, but that was all filmed days ago and now Ellie has actually left.
Fallout and Tensions in the Villa
Speaking to The Sun, the source added: 'The whole fallout of the vote was electric and is going to make for amazing TV. Everyone was devastated that Ellie left and viewers will definitely be left scratching their heads.' Elicia coupled up with Aidan Murphy and fellow bombshell Ethan Ellis was chosen by Priya Jaswal, but this was all because Aidan was already taken in the first place. Insiders have warned viewers to 'expect the unexpected' and teased that tension between the girls in the villa will become higher than ever.
It all comes just hours after it was revealed that Ellie's exit comes alongside four other islanders. As such, in a mass exodus, five stars are set to leave the show - with the other four's dumping coming as a result of a public vote while Ellie volunteered herself.
Fan Theories and Speculation
At the end of Tuesday's episode, viewers were given the opportunity to vote for their favourite boy and favourite girl, and some have suggested that the results put Ellie in an unworkable position. Fans believe Finley would have lost the popularity vote and Ellie opted to follow him back to the UK. 'I reckon Finley was voted least favourite and dumped so she followed,' one wrote. Others added that the theory 'made the most sense' and that Ellie probably felt there was 'no point in staying' if Fin was gone.
Others pointed out that it was unlikely Ellie would meet someone else in the week that remains on the show: 'There’s only a week or two left, I really doubt there will be someone that could come in for Ellie that she could form a connection with. Especially with the journey she has had, I can see why she decided to just leave with him.'
Though it may seem too soon for the results of the vote to have been revealed to the Islanders, ITV do sometimes have time to film a dumping the same night as the vote. This is because they often wait until nightfall for the dramatic scenes, which can cause filming to start well into the night. With the vote closing at 10:30pm, it was likely early enough to continue filming.
Some fans suggested that Fin wouldn't be in the bottom three, as he appeared to be doing alright in fan polls. 'I can’t see Finley being bottom 3 though? He was doing ok in the polls I saw,' wrote one. Another agreed: 'Yeah I assumed Jordan would have got the least votes as he's always been lowest on polls and gives nothing to the show. Unless his sisters fans have voted him up.' This was referring to Casa Amor boy Jordan Wilson, whose sister Tianna has 11 million subscribers on YouTube.
Others suggested that even if Fin did not get dumped, the vote might still be the reason that Ellie leaves. Public votes have often been used not just to suss out who might be the least liked and put them at risk of being dumped, but to find the favourites and get them to pick who will go home.
