Micah Lussier Isn’t The Same Girl You Saw On Love Is Blind

Micah Lussier had just moved to Scottsdale, Arizona, when she got the call to join the Seattle-based season of Love Is Blind. She had started the casting process months before, when she was still living in Washington, so she let the producers know that she was now based in another state. “They were like, ‘We literally don’t care. You’re coming on this damn show,’” Lussier tells Elite Daily.

The 27-year-old marketing manager’s ambiguous residential status was just one reason she attracted controversy on the fourth season of Love Is Blind, which aired on Netflix in March and April 2023. “Viewers were so mad about it, saying ‘She doesn’t even go here,’” Lussier says. “Dude, I didn’t cast myself on this show. They wanted me there, so I’m going to come. You’d do it too.”

This unbothered confidence, according to her, is a hard-won attitude based on the last few months. When the show was airing, Lussier got tons of backlash for how she came across: as someone who appeared to be laughing at other women’s expenses and openly flirting with her ex in front of his new fiancée.

While she didn’t resonate with the version of herself she saw on screen — even telling followers on Instagram that she would “feel the same anger” to see that behavior on TV — Lussier internalized the negative comments. “At some points, I thought, ‘Oh, my gosh, maybe they’re right,’” she says. “When you hear something so many times, you start wondering whether you really are that kind of person.”

Nine months later, she’s at peace. “Once I was able to make it clear to myself that the reality is different from how I’m portrayed on TV, it was easier for me to let go of all the heaviness,” Lussier says. “I was able to start having fun again.” Now, she makes lighthearted fun of her reality TV reputation on TikTok, sharing jokey posts about being “the mean girl on Love Is Blind” or her bashful response when people ask where they know her from.

Here, Lussier reflects on her most controversial moments on the show, how she dealt with the criticism, and why good villains are more complicated than you might think.

Elite Daily: What was your reaction when you watched that first batch of Love Is Blind episodes? Was it different from what you remembered, having lived it?

Micah Lussier: I was really shocked. When it first came out, I was getting hate immediately, and I wasn’t expecting that reaction. There are things I did — for example, talking about Chelsea in the pool or being too intoxicated in that conversation with Kwame — that I’m willing to own up to, apologize for, and grow from. But the stuff that didn’t happen the way it was shown was frustrating to see.

Once someone on reality TV becomes a character, that’s who they are. Viewers will react to everything based on their perception of that person, which is based on the edit that was presented to them. Now, that doesn’t matter to me at all, but it’s something I had to realize quickly.

ED: You acknowledged that concept when you issued an apology on Instagram. It was almost like you knew that people had a right to be upset at what they saw.

ML: It’s because I know that’s not how it really happened. I wanted to acknowledge that people were hurt and apologize for my hand in it, but I wanted to also make it clear that that’s not necessarily what went down.

ED: Specifically, which moments in the show portrayed you in a way you didn’t resonate with?

ML: The one that sticks out the most — and probably the biggest thing that people grabbed onto as an indicator of my character — was a specific scene with Amber in the pods. Amber had come back from her date with Paul. At that point, I was wondering if Paul was going to change his mind. So me and Irina, being the idiots we were, decided to go listen and see if she seemed happy. It was dumb and immature, but there was no ill intent.

Irina went over there and listened, but it was hard to hear, and eventually she heard them crying. That’s when me and Irina both walked away. When Amber came around the corner and I saw her crying, I ran over to her and hugged her. She told me it was OK, that she loved me, and that she was going to carry on with her other connection.

The reality was so different from what was shown. But based on the edit, I hear in my DMs, messages, and comments every day, “She laughed at someone’s pain.” I would never in my entire life laugh at anybody’s pain, and I didn’t do that.

ED: Viewers were also upset about your behavior toward Kwame at the pool party. You told People that you weren’t interested in him, but you just tend to be a flirty person. What did you think of the criticism you received?

ML: Honestly, I’ll stick behind the criticism on that. Of course, the edit made it 20 times worse, but I still did all those things. We were so hammered. I’m pretty sure Paul and I drank a whole bottle of tequila and two bottles of champagne before we even arrived.

In the back of my head, I was having that feeling you get when you think someone likes you — not necessarily being my best self, and knowing that Kwame probably still had feelings for me. But my intentions were never to try to get Kwame back from Chelsea. That’s not something I would ever do, and not something either of us even wanted.

The way I smile when I’m talking with someone is flirty. Does that make it OK? No. But that’s what it was. Other than that, a lot of it was blown out of proportion. Chelsea and I didn’t even have beef, and it was made to look way nastier than it was.

A good villain is someone who’s polarizing. If everyone hated someone, why even talk about them?

ED: Your arc on the show was interesting: After the first batch of episodes, you were labeled a mean girl, but by the time the finale aired, the wedding outcome painted a more sympathetic and relatable picture of you. What kinds of messages and comments were you receiving throughout the show?

ML: At the beginning, it was all very negative: a lot of really nasty messages, attacking not just who I am as a person, but also my appearance. As the show aired, people started to understand me more, and their perceptions started to twist.

I went from being someone everyone hated to someone who was more polarizing. At that point, it was a relief. [Laughs] I start in a sh*t hole, but I’m [climbing] my way out as you spend more time with me.

ED: Even with that redemption arc, a lot of people considered you the villain of your season. What do you think about that term?

ML: I don’t mind being portrayed as a villain on TV. At least it was interesting to watch, and people had something to talk and laugh about. But in real life, no, I’m not a villain. I know who I am, and over time people are slowly going to realize that I’m not the Big Bad Wolf.

A lot of fictional villains or reality TV villains are just normal people who are fun to dislike. A good villain is someone who’s polarizing. If everyone hated someone, why even talk about them? It’s fun for a situation to have two sides.

I have such a spot in my heart for people who are portrayed badly.

ED: Would you do reality TV again, knowing what you know now?

ML: Yeah. Honestly, I had a good time. The worst of it is over, and even if it’s not, I know I can get through some pretty bad things and come out on top. Many people who come out of shows and don’t get a good edit are like “never again.” But I don’t care. Think what you want to think. I’m just going to have fun with it.

ED: What about watching TV — does your own experience affect how you view other shows?

ML: For sure. I have such a spot in my heart for people who are portrayed badly. A person could be awful on the show, but I’ll still think “I wonder if that happened like that.” I can’t help but feel what they’re going to feel when it comes out or how people are going to react.

There are certain shows I literally cannot watch anymore, like Too Hot to Handle and Special Forces. I choked my way through this last season of Love Is Blind, just so I could know what was going on because people were going nuts on TikTok.

ED: How would you say Micah now is different from Micah who got the call to appear on Love Is Blind?

ML: I used to seek a lot of validation from men and friends, and I had a shifting personality based on who I felt like I needed to be for each person. But now I feel so confident in myself and who I am, and that’s the version of myself I’m going to present to people. If they like that version of me, those are the people who are supposed to be in my life.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.