Marcel Somerville thinks the ‘Love Island’ casting process needs to change.
The former Blazin’ Squad star – who was chosen last when he appeared on the programme in 2017 – thinks producers need to consider the "tastes" of contestants if they want to avoid a "colour situation", after Yewande Biala was initially snubbed when the show returned to screens this week.
He said: "The one thing that lets the show down is when they’re doing their casting they don’t take into consideration people’s tastes.
"The casting progress needs to change. They need to listen and think about who they’re putting in the villa and at what times.
"They need to make sure people match up in terms of their types, they put a bunch of good looking people in there but if you’re putting people in there that won’t form connections you’re making it impossible − especially if it is a person of colour, they’re making it seem like it’s a colour situation."
And Marcel – who found love on the show with Gabby Allen – admitted he was concerned that his "ethnic background" was the reason why he was snubbed during the first couplings.
He told The Sun newspaper: "As a person of ethnic background you do feel ‘Is it because I’m black?’ You do have that go through your head.
"I’m not different from anyone else, I’m a human, I go to the gym, I have a good body. The only difference between you and that person is the colour of your skin.
"For my description I said I was tall dark and handsome but that can mean something totally different.
"But a girl may say the same in her application but mean a tanned man not a black man.
"When Samira [Mighty, 2018 contestant] was on the show she liked dating white guys but they didn’t send in any white men that liked dating black girls.
"She could fancy someone and put everything on the line for that person but it won’t be reciprocated to her because she’s not their type. They put Samira in the villa but no one was interested for weeks.
"Samira is totally beautiful, the fact she found it so hard in the villa was perplexing."
When it comes to his own dating life, the 33-year-old star insisted he is interested in "all different kinds" of women, unlike some of the other contestants.
He said: "In my year there were no girls in the villa that liked to date black guys. I was there thinking to myself ‘This is a bit strange.’
"I like to date all different kinds of girls, to me it doesn’t matter about your nationality, race or background, as long as we have a connection we can see where things go.
"Other people are very focused on looks and appearance."
Marcel Somerville calls for Love Island changes
