Love Island USA’s Miguel Has No Regrets About Casa Amor

When Miguel Harichi, a 27-year-old fitness model from London with “f*ckboi traits to keep things fun,” entered the Love Island USA Season 6 villa on Episode 10, the women in the house flocked right to him. (Or, as he put it on the show, “These girls are playing tug of war with me right now, and I’m trying my hardest not to get ripped apart.”)

But Harichi came to Fiji to embrace his status as one of the season’s bombshells. “I wanted to get to know as many people [as possible],” Harichi tells Elite Daily. “I’m coming in much later than everyone else, and I don’t like playing the game. I wanted to see who was the right connection for me.” He was even prepared to stay single if he didn’t connect with anyone (which would have left him at risk of getting kicked off).

Eventually, after Harichi and Liv Walker broke things off, he paired up with 24-year-old Leah Kateb for the rest of his time in the villa (well, minus a few days in Casa Amor). Although they didn’t couple up immediately, she caught his eye early on. “After our first conversation, I was like, ‘This girl’s a really big vibe,’” he says. “I knew from the beginning I really liked her as a person in general.”

Now, the two are out of the villa and soaking in their second-place win, support from the public, and endless fan edits. As much as Harichi joked about being a player, he won over the audience with his transparency, silly accents, and exceptional memory. (Fans swooned when when he remembered the names of Leah’s horses, pigs, dogs, and cat.) “I think people just loved the fact that we were ourselves 100%, and we never put the pressures of Love Island to mess things up between us,” he says.

Below, the Season 6 runner-up opens up about whether he regrets Casa Amor, the moment he wanted to go home, and being on “Leah Island.”

Elite Daily: Congrats on coming in second place! What do you think it is about your relationship with Leah that won fans over?

Miguel Harichi: It was our authenticity. We kept it very real with each other and we didn’t allow the pace of Love Island to take over. We weren’t rushing anything. She was especially doing that for me, which I respected because I moved at my own speed. It was very much like the real world, and I think people appreciated that.

We also had incredible banter. We’re so similar in ways that I am still amazed by. The way we bounced off each other was very real.

The name of the game is finding connection, and in order to find connection, you’ve got to take risks.

ED: What made you want to couple up with her initially?

MH: During my date with Cassidy Laudano, Leah kept popping up in my head, and I realized how much I wanted to get to know her on a deeper level. That was a lightbulb moment.

Me and Leah had conversations prior to the Cassidy date — friendly, good banter. I spoke to JaNa Craig and Serena Page after that date, and I said, “I’m surprised at how much Leah has been popping in my head. I want to speak to her because I think I’m starting to like her a little bit more than just a friend now.” And they got all giddy because that’s her gang. They were like, “Oh, my God, wait, you like Leah? Since when did this happen?”

ED: Let’s talk about Casa Amor. You were quite excited to go in — there are even memes about it!

MH: Casa was an interesting experience. I think the boys were excited to get out the villa more than anything. I was definitely a hype man. I told them, “Boys, none of us are in closed-off relationships. We’ve all said that we’re open. Our girls have been open in the past, and we haven’t had an opportunity to test our waters, but now we’re open and we are the ones in control to an extent. Let’s test our waters.”

But I always said we had to be respectful of the girls back home ’cause we’ve got a good thing going on, but we need to see if what we got is real. I know a couple of the guys went a bit overboard with it.

We all have side pieces on the outside. You know what I’m saying? People don’t just have one person that they’re talking to. People have little love triangles.

ED: You ended up hitting it off with Sierra Mills and bringing her back to the villa. How do you look back on your time in Casa now?

MH: It’s obviously great to meet new people. Me and Leah had just started to get to know each other. We had just got into a couple. I was starting to really like her, and I saw this as an opportunity to test that, to see if it was just a puppy love thing or something a lot deeper.

I think I went about it in a respectful way. There were definitely times I could’ve reeled it in a little bit more but I don’t regret my choices. If I hadn’t done what I’d done, I wouldn’t have known for sure how I felt toward Leah. It was a risk I was willing to take. The name of the game is finding connection, and in order to find connection, you’ve got to take risks.

ED: How did you feel coming back to the villa from Casa?

MH: Coming back from Casa, I know not everyone’s going to like what I said, but it is what it is. We all have side pieces on the outside. You know what I’m saying? People don’t just have one person that they’re talking to. People have little love triangles.

But coming back solidified how I felt. It was like the Cassidy date where Leah was in my head. I remember telling myself, “If I don’t bring Sierra back and Leah is in a couple, or she starts to feel different about me, will I regret not bringing Sierra back?” But bringing Sierra back and saying to them, “I’m going to get to know both of you” was still very one-sided. My feelings toward Leah were a lot stronger than I even realized.

ED: You’ve described your time in the villa as a roller-coaster. What was the low point?

MH: Andrea Carmona leaving and the movie night, specifically when I saw Leah’s video. Andrea getting eliminated was my third day there or something, and the amount of anger and sh*t that came out of nowhere — I was there like, “What the f*ck is going on?” I was getting spun around in this tornado of resentment. I was like, “Nah, I don’t f*ck with that decision either.” Then I sat back, I said, “Why am I getting so involved? I just got here. I shouldn’t have a say.”

Movie night triggered my past, an energy I grew up with that I now avoid when it comes to relationships. I’ll usually turn away from that energy. A part of me wanted to go home. The person that I was getting to know was showing traits I’ve run away from. But I told myself I can’t run away. I need to face it.

I pulled her aside and I was transparent about how I felt. I told her I know she’s a reflective person and she tries to make amends of things. She even cried after seeing that video. And that shows me growth. That’s one thing I always respect in people — if someone’s willing to grow from their shortcomings, they’re a greater person than myself. Letting her know how I felt was an important step for me, and I think for both of us, in our relationship.

It really was Leah’s Island. She is genuinely such a character.

ED: Now that the show has wrapped, Leah has 1.8 million Instagram followers, and fans are calling her the People’s Princess. It seemed like you knew the public would love her before you guys got out, but she didn’t?

MH: I really did. I feel like I can take hate and negativity quite well. I’m an “it is what it is, move on” type of person. But I know for Leah, there were times where she was so scared of what would happen when we came out of the villa. And I’d tell her, “You’re a good person. If I can see it, anybody outside can see it. Yes, you had certain occasions where you could’ve been a bit over the top and sounded a bit spiteful, but you always recovered from that and you apologized. And that trait is something that can only be respected, not hated.” Everything she’s getting right now, she deserves every little ounce of it and more.

And it’s funny, they always had this inside joke that it was Leah Island. It really was Leah’s Island. She is genuinely such a character. It doesn’t surprise me — her little one-liners, her funny reactions to situations. It just makes sense. She’s an honest person and never tried to be someone else.

Every time I spoke to her, she was 120% herself. She deserves everything because the person that she is, is incredible.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.