In Shows Like ‘Love Island USA,’ the Setting Is Another Character

Last summer, while filming an episode during the fifth season of the hit reality TV show “Love Island USA,” the executive producer Simon Thomas had a stroke of luck that most reality show producers could only dream of. It was golden hour, and two of the contestants — attractive young singles looking for love — were sitting on the veranda of the souped-up luxury resort that was the “Love Island” set. Exquisitely framed, they shared a tender, passionate kiss.

“Make no mistake: They did not stay together, and they did not even remain together for the duration of the show,” Thomas said in an interview. “But that moment was magic. You couldn’t have filmed it better for a scripted show.”

Since its debut on British television in 2015, “Love Island” and its American remake, “Love Island USA,” have made a unique spectacle of their exotic island settings, from the all-inclusive resorts of Majorca (in the U.K. version) to the coastal villas of Fiji (in the U.S., since 2023). The locale is more than a mere backdrop to the action: To invoke an old movie cliché, the setting is like a character itself.

“The whole point of this show isn’t to show some reality TV hopefuls in a box and produce them,” Thomas said. “It’s to find some reality TV hopefuls who want to find love and give them an environment in which they can authentically fall in love.”

“What better way to fall in love,” he added, “than on a Fijian beach at sunset?”

With its breezy tone and low-stakes drama, reality TV is typically designed to create a feeling of escapism already, and tropical settings can offer an additional layer of satisfying secondhand pleasure. Such locations are appealing particularly for dating shows, which have the added incentive of needing to kindle new relationships — an easier feat on a sun-kissed Caribbean island than on a network backlot. Programs like “Bachelor in Paradise,” “Love Island,” “Perfect Match,” “Too Hot to Handle” and many more have found a great deal of success by following this simple formula: Put men and women together on an island resort to flirt and fall in love.