No matter what happens during the season, you can almost always count on Love Is Blind contestants to attend the reunion and address their drama — even if it’s by Zoom. But during the Season 5 reunion, which dropped Oct. 15 on Netflix, there was one conspicuous absence: Uche Okoroha.
“Uche was invited to the reunion today,” co-host Nick Lachey announced during the special. “And he chose not to be a part of this.”
If he did show up, there would have been much to discuss, as Uche’s relationships with Lydia Velez Gonzalez and Aaliyah Cosby caused much of the early Season 5 drama. It wasn’t a traditional love triangle, though. Uche and Lydia previously dated outside the pods, while he and Aaliyah forged a connection on the show that ultimately fell apart due to the sticky situation.
Since the show began airing, Uche made several claims via his Instagram Stories, including that Lydia followed him onto Love Is Blind, and he and Aaliyah briefly dated after filming. Many fans expected him to address this and more at the reunion. (As of publication, Uche has yet to comment on why he chose not to participate in the special.)
While Uche may not have been there, his castmates reacted to his absence — both during the reunion and in recent interviews with Bustle.
Uche Texted Aaliyah & Lydia
During the reunion, Aaliyah and Lydia shared that Uche had texted him when the season premiered. Lydia said he was “available” to talk if they had any questions, with Aaliyah realizing that he sent her “the exact same text.”
“Copy and paste,” Vanessa Lachey said. “The man is efficient.”
Milton Johnson shared that Uche had texted him on his wedding day and “occasionally still texts,” but Milton doesn’t respond.
Lydia tells Bustle she “knew he wasn’t going to show up.” As for why Uche claimed Lydia followed him onto Love Is Blind, she thinks “he didn’t agree with how he was presented” and wanted a “clear image” on the show.
“At the end of the day, I got my biggest reward for staying true to myself,” she says. “My biggest reward is my husband. I won. I definitely won. And he might be bitter, so, I’m sorry, that seems like a you problem.”
Izzy Is “Not A Fan”
Izzy tells Bustle he was surprised and “kind of not” surprised that Uche didn’t show. “I feel like you should show up and defend yourself and give people your side of the story,” he explains.
During the special, Izzy also said he was “not a fan” of Uche. “To some of the girls, he would just talk bad about me, which I was shocked [about] ‘cause I thought we were cool.”
Uche’s Absence “Shocked” Stacy
For her part, Stacy was “shocked” that Uche stayed home. “I thought he would have been the first one with a flight out,” she tells Bustle. “I thought he would have come early.”
Uche had “a lot of things to clear up or answer to,” Stacy says, “and I would assume he would know that, by not being there, it just leaves everybody else the opportunity to take that space.”
She adds that during Season 5, Uche “wanted to lead the crowd in what was going on or what he wanted people to think was going on,” which made her think he’d show up and speak about his experience.
Additional reporting by Brad Witter.
The post Why Didn’t Uche Go To The ‘Love Is Blind’ Reunion? The Cast Reacts appeared first on Bustle.