Love Is Blind has allegedly settled the class action lawsuit started by show alum Jeremy Hartwell.
According to season 2 participant Haseeb Hussain, the production company behind Love Is Blind recently settled the case out of court.
“So, the producers of Love Is Blind just settled their class action lawsuit and I just got the notice in the mail,” Hussain, an attorney himself, said in a December 2024 TikTok video, holding up a legal notice. “They are paying a total of $1.4 million to the class representative, which is [Hartwell], 35 percent to the attorneys, which is just half a million dollars, which is crazy because all I’m getting is $4,000, which is the rest of everyone else from Love Is Blind seasons 2, 3, 4 and 5 and Ultimatum [seasons] 1 and 2.”
According to Hussain, if he “wants more,” he can opt out of the settlement and sue the production company as an individual.
Related: ‘Love Is Blind’ Producers Address Cast’s Claims They Were Mistreated
Love Is Blind’s production company, Kinetic Content, responded after former cast members of the reality series claimed they were put through “emotional warfare” during their time on the show. “The well-being of our participants is of paramount importance to Kinetic,” the production company told Variety in a Tuesday, April 18, statement. “We have rigorous protocols […]
“That would mean a lot more work that I would have to do, so might just be worth taking the $4 [thousand],” Hussain said in his TikTok video, noting that the lawsuit had merit because the show apparently mislabeled the participants as independent contractors instead of employees.
In Hussain’s TikTok comment section, fellow season 2 alum Kyle Abrams noted that “[his] number was different.” Shayne Jansen, for his part, asked whether he’d also get a sum.
@haseeblegal #loveisblind #lawsuit #netflix #settlement #lawyer #realitytv
♬ original sound – haseeb
“Probably more than me,” Hussain replied.
Abrams, 32, and Jansen, 35, were briefly engaged to Shaina Hurley and Natalie Lee, respectively, after the Chicago-set season of the experiment. Hussain and Hartwell, who was the first to file the lawsuit, both left the pods single.
Us Weekly confirmed in July 2022 that Hartwell sued Netflix and Kinetic Content, claiming that show producers “intentionally underpaid” cast members and “deprived them of food, water and sleep.”
Related: Love Is Blind’s Most Dramatic Moments Through the Years
While the premise of Netflix’s Love Is Blind is to help singles find their perfect match, the experiment hasn’t come without drama. During season 2 of the dating show, which premiered in February 2022, multiple love triangles blossomed. In one corner, Shayne Jansen connected with both Natalie Lee and Shaina Hurley, and in another, Jarrette […]
“The contracts required contestants to agree that if they left the show before filming was done, they would be penalized by being required to pay $50,000 in ‘liquidated damages,’” Hartwell’s attorney, Chantal Payton, said in a statement at the time. “With that being 50 times what some of the cast members would earn during the entire time that they worked, this certainly had the potential to instill fear in the cast and enable production to exert even further control.”
Kinetic Content, for its part, denied the allegations.
“Mr. Hartwell’s involvement in season 2 of Love is Blind lasted less than one week,” a rep for the production company told Us that same month. “Unfortunately, for Mr. Hartwell, his journey ended early after he failed to develop a significant connection with any other participant. While we will not speculate as to his motives for filing the lawsuit, there is absolutely no merit to Mr. Hartwell’s allegations.”
Neither Hartwell nor Kinetic Content have publicly addressed the proposed settlement.
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