Islanders
‘Love Island USA’: Are Iris & TJ Back Together After Season 7?
Love Island Games is in full swing, but we haven’t forgotten about Love Island USA just yet. There’s room in our hearts for both, especially since there’s plenty of relationship drama still happening with the Season 7 cast post-reunion.
Iris Kendall and Pepe Garcia-Gonzalez are the latest couple from the show to call it quits, but some fans suspect that Iris has already moved on… to someone fans will recognize. Iris seemingly reunited with her villa ex, TJ Palma, days after her other relationship ended. Then, they added fuel to the fire when they attended a New York Fashion Week event hand-in-hand, commemorating it with an Instagram post.
So, have the Season 7 stars rekindled their romance? Keep reading for everything we know about Iris and TJ’s relationship status.
Are Iris and TJ back together?
View this post on Instagram
They may be packing on the PDA, but the duo hasn’t officially confirmed that they’re dating, but fans have suspected as much since early September.
It all started when TJ commented on one of Iris’ Instagram posts, sparking a major fan reaction. He used a playful GIF rather than words. It’s a clip from Season 7 when the duo went into the confessional post-Heart Rate challenge. “I really thought I was a dog,” Iris says in her dalmatian costume, while TJ smiles at her.
Other eagle-eyed fans think that Iris and TJ took a trip together around that time, but there’s no proof at the moment if that’s actually true. According to Cosmopolitan, TJ recently went to Disney World, and during the outing, he posted a Snapchat Story of a woman holding a pickle. People were quick to point out that her manicure looked similar to Iris’.
The outlet also screenshotted a September 3 DeuxMoi submission that claimed the two went to a Tampa grocery store together. The post couldn’t be verified but it’s worth considering.
And if you don’t remember, all of this comes after TJ and Iris reunited shortly after the Season 7 finale aired. Though they had a brief fling in the villa before TJ’s elimination, Iris told Swooon that their meet-up was purely about closure.
“It wasn’t like right away I jumped into Pepe,” she said of her time on the show. “I definitely had my moments where I was very sad, and I grieved over that really upsetting loss, and I did try and leave, and [TJ] knows that.”
Kendall added that she had more details to tell Palma at the time. “I think that most of our conversation was just me getting that off my chest and explaining that to him and having that closure with him because he’s someone who I really did care about,” she said.
Why did Iris and Pepe break up?
The stars have been vague about why they split. Pepe was the first to confirm that he parted ways with Iris, via a TMZ paparazzi interview. He also said that the rumors that he cheated on Iris were untrue.
Later that day, Iris gave a statement of her own to E! News. “I had hoped to keep this private,” Iris began. “The connection that I formed has ended, and while it isn’t how I would have imagined, I will always value the unique experience that we shared. It’s been a difficult transition, but I’m moving forward with hope, gratitude, and positivity for the future.”
Do you think Iris and TJ are back together? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
