Does it feel weird now thinking that it’s completely normal to watch Joey Essex in the Love Island 2024 villa? Like, when he was first announced as a bombshell I was shook to my core, but now I’m watching him make Jessy iced coffees and play snog, marry, avoid without batting an eyelid.

Despite this, it’s very blatant that Joey Essex is getting special treatment when it comes to his time on Love Island 2024. He’s the first ever celebrity Islander the show has had, and it shows. It really seems as though ITV will never let him see any heat, or ever be at risk from leaving the show. Even dumped Islanders have spoken out about how it felt as though Joey was getting his own rules in the villa.

So, let’s break it down. Here’s a proper look as just how much Love Island 2024 has been centred around the king of reality himself, Joey Essex.

Dumped Islander Patsy has said Joey had his own rules in the villa

@closeronline

Well, well, well, it looks like Joey Essex has his own rules in the villa 👀 #LoveIsland #LoveIsland2024 #LoveIslandJoeyEssex #JoeyEssex

♬ original sound – Closeronline

Dumped Islander Patsy Field has seemingly confirmed what we have all been thinking. “He did kind of seem like he had his own rules to follow but he was in there just as another Islander,” she told Closer Online. “But, who knows what that bloke is getting paid for it, do you know what I mean?”

She added he’s been getting “a little bit of preferential treatment” in the villa, “because he’s a celeb”.

Joey has had TWO exes added to the villa

Every now and then, Love Island will throw in an ex of an Islander, to spice up the drama a bit. But for Joey, he’s had this twice. Just to make sure his name is never out of our mouths. Literally every bit of drama is about him.

He of course used to date Grace, and she was added to the villa to see if she could rekindle things with him, but he also knew Casa Amor bombshell Emma, as they’d previously had a thing together, too.

He’s literally avoided every single dumping

Look, we’re not silly. The producers had a plan when they put Joey Essex in the villa, and there was no way they were going to secure him on the show to just to have him get dumped straight away. But, it’s become more than clear that Joey will avoid dumpings right until the very end.

After every vote, least popular Islanders have been immediately dumped. The only time this wasn’t the case? When Joey Essex was in the bottom couples alongside Grace. There was no way he was going home. And then, when the Islanders were able to discuss who to leave, Joey’s name wasn’t mentioned. Convenient!

After this moment, one person wrote on Twitter: “The producers will do whatever it takes to keep Grace and Joey in until the finals. This episode confirmed that they’ll protect them at all costs and are willing to fabricate fake drama with any of the Islanders to make them more accepted by the public.”

And Jessy came in just as he could have been vulnerable

To add to Joey missing every chance to get dumped, just as it was announced he and Grace where among the least popular Islanders, Jessy was sent in. We all know by now that Love Island has a bunch of bombshells waiting, and sends in people as and when their arrival with have the most impact.

Jessy’s impact? Stealing Joey from Grace, just as Love Island announces a vote which will have the least popular Islanders dumped – which Jessy and whoever she couples up with were immune from. Even Joey himself said he didn’t expect Jessy to choose him. Oh, and Grace stole Joey from Samantha, just as she was dumped! Are we noticing a pattern?

“Funny how producers bring in the favourite couple vote as soon as Joey is selected,” one person noted.

Love Island 2024 viewers have accused the show of being ‘rigged’ towards ‘producer plant’ Joey

Ever since he entered the villa, Joey has been accused of being a “producer plant” and it’s been said the show is “rigged” towards him.

Nothing was said when he fought with Omar, and the very next day Omar was voted off the show. After this, one person said on Twitter: “If this dumping didn’t CONFIRM Joey and Grace are producer plants then nothing will. WHY were their names not brought up in the group discussion?!”

Omar himself has added fuel to this fire, when after his dumping he went on a podcast and the host said “Joey was 100 per cent sent by the producers!” to which Omar replied: “No comment, I…Guys, no comment!”. He smirked and held his hands up as he was pressed for an answer.

Never forget how Joey was brought into the Love Island villa like some sort of undercover agent

It can’t go without mentioning the pure lengths Love Island went to get Joey into the villa in the first place. As he was revealed, it was also said Love Island took “every precaution” to keep it under wraps that he was the first bombshell entering the villa this year.

The rest of the Islanders flew to Mallorca to enter the villa, but Joey was transported by ferry, to avoid him being snapped at the airport and raising any suspicion.

Ahead of his trip, Joey told The Sun: “I feel like Joey Bond, ‘the names Essex, Joey Essex’. It felt like a military operation, not even the journey itself but the process of even getting through the application process and to this point. I got on the plane to Ibiza, I made sure I still wore my mask when I went out for dinner, and then we got the boat over to Majorca to a villa hidden in the mountains in the middle of nowhere.”