LOVE Island has been plunged into another fakery row tonight as fans accused Joey Essex of 'acting' for a storyline.
Viewers of the hit ITV2 show were shocked as Joey went on a date with new bombshell Jessy, telling her he and Grace were " not closed off."
He then came back to the villa and told the lads that he and Jessy "got deeper" in their brief date than he and Grace have in the whole time he has known her.
"I think the chemistry between me and Grace, it's a different type of chemistry," he told Ronnie.
"The date worked. it wasn't awkward. We found out a lot about each other quite quickly. I can't not explore it. I learnt more in that date than I have the whole time that I have been here with Grace.
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"That's a statement. I can't deny that. It's the truth."
As this got back to Grace, she was fuming and pulled him for a chat.
While Joey insisted "nothing has changed", he insisted it wasn't a big deal to get to know the new girl.
The exchange later left Grace in tears to the girls, as she watched on while Joey and Jessy enjoyed a second flirty chat.
In the bedroom that evening, Joey then confessed to the boys: "I feel like [Jessy] came in and rattled everyone, there is definitely something there."
Fans watching at home were not buying this sudden U-turn from Joey, however, and felt like he was faking it for drama.
Some even accused Grace of being in on the 'acting' too.
Taking to X, formerly twitter, one cynical fan ranted: "Joey and Grace are just acting , I don’t believe in their drama it’s fake they just want to stir the pot a little bit."
Another seconded this, adding: "Joey and Grave both contradicting themselves production please do better. Had enough of Essex island bore off."
A third chimed in, accusing the show of trying to emulate Jess Harding and Sammy Root's journey.
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They vented: "The producers saw how Jess and Sammy’s struggle love won last year so they’re prompting joey and grace to do the same. soooo boringggg."
A fourth agreed, posting: "This Joey drama is defo fake."
Another didn't mince their words, saying: "Joey is a MF liar. The way he so unsettled about the whole bombshell thing is giving fake. Too much explanation."
Meanwhile, a sixth summed up: "icl Joey is dragging this supposed chemistry with him and jessy it’s giving fake storyline."
Love Island continues at 9pm on ITV2 and ITVX
