Stop Slut-Shaming Kenzie Annis On Love Island
The splits-loving nursing school grad is playing the game the way it’s designed.
When Kenzie Annis waltzed into the Love Island USA villa and immediately did the splits in her opening montage, I knew we were meeting someone special. The 24-year-old nursing school grad from Georgia has a penchant for dropping it low whenever someone pisses her off, and the move has become so legendary that even Megan Thee Stallion is a fan. She’s coped with every heartbreak by cutting off men and doing gymnastics, and she’s continued to embrace her summer of fun despite all the villa’s chaos.
As I’ve been a Kenzie supporter from Day 1, you can imagine my surprise when I started seeing fans and other islanders criticize her for “exploring.” It’s true that Kenzie has been dating around on the island, making romantic connections with Zac Georgiou, Corbin Mims, Caleb McDaniel, Dylan Wrona, and Gal Tshnieder so far. She’s meeting people, getting her flirt on, and exploring physical and emotional chemistry — the exact protocol this show expects of its contestants in challenges and beyond.
All the men she’s been talking to have also been free to explore their options, and none have directly expressed an issue with her to her face. And yet, when she and Corbin landed in the bottom three couples in Episode 14 (due to fans’ lack of support for them compared with other islanders), the boys considered sending Kenzie home because they didn’t like the “way [she was] moving.” This got relayed by Corbin as her being “lustful,” an apparent dig at her openness to exploring multiple connections at once.
Fans hopped on the Kenzie criticism train, but I was immediately perplexed. First of all, being “lustful” is not an insult, unless we have collectively decided to transport ourselves back to 16th century Puritanism via this show. Second of all, it’s not even true. Kenzie’s dalliance with Caleb only came about because the viewers put them together by vote. She made a solid effort to get to know him — and sure, she might have been making out with Corbin in secret, but she was never exclusive with anyone! God forbid she want to kiss a boy she has a crush on, on Love Island of all places. Isn’t that the entire point?
When the Casa Amor girls returned to the villa, they doubled down on talking smack about Kenzie, joking that she “just likes anyone who likes her.” Again, I’m not sure why this is a problem. Kenzie could teach a Ph.D.-level course in cutting off men when they act up — case in point, the way she’s barely spoken to Zac since he left her for Kayda Bosse in Episode 2. We love a woman who knows her worth!
All of this unfair criticism, combined with the hypersexual headlines about her in the press, have left me no choice but to defend Kenzie’s approach to Love Island with my full chest. Thankfully, I’m not alone in her army of supporters. “Kenzie is basically #womaninmaledominatedfields . I'll give her my 10,” said one person on Reddit. “Unpopular opinion maybe, but Kenzie is pretty much the only girl actually DOING THE THING,” said another.
When Megan Thee Stallion returned for the Episode 23 cake challenge, she told the boys that “it’s very possible to explore and still be respectful,” calling them out for putting the girls down to lift other girls up. If Megan Thee Stallion herself has signed off, the case is closed.
Let our girl be. She’s splits-ing her way to stardom, and taking no prisoners while she’s at it.
