Love Island South Africa is getting some more black cast members soon

"Not the damage control darkies," said one Twitter user

Durang, Thimna and Asad are contestants on South Africa's Love Island
SHOCKED: People were not impressed that the show's opening line up featured just three non-black contestants (L-R) Durang, Thimna and Asad (Images via @durangatembe @itsmythimthim and @asado_b Instagram )

AFTER WIDESPREAD uproar on social media over the number of white people in the show’s launch cast, producers on Love Island South Africa have changed tack.

In a tweet, shared at 8.48pm on March 1, the team posted close-up pictures of new cast members that are expected to enter the villa.

From the images, it is clear that at least one of the new cast members has black heritage.

Now, Twitter users are joking that South Africa’s Love Island team have called in the emergency blacks.

One Twitter user joked: “It’s the zooming in for me, they’re trying to let you know they’ve got darkies on the show now.”

Another added: “They got cancelled and picked up the first blacks they saw from the streets of Cape Town, tears.”

One Twitter account was impressively witty and posted: “Not the damage control darkies.”

Of course, we do not know whether programme producers had already planned the new, more diverse entries into the show.

The lack of diversity in the programme’s opening cast received widespread media coverage on platforms such as the BBC, CNN and many others. The launch cast featured just three non-white contestants.

Durang is a personal trainer from Cameroon. Thimna told show creators she was looking for a great boyfriend on the South African dating show. Asad is also a personal trainer, who is looking forward to new experiences on the programme.

On Twitter, #LoveIslandOrania started trending in South Africa, reaching number three. Orania is a town in South Africa where there are no black people.

The mainly white cast was striking because 47.7 million people, out of the 58.4 million in South Africa are black, according to Statista.

Contestants who enter Love Island South Africa hope to win a cash prize of R1 million (£47,500).

Love Island Nigeria has been commissioned by the Digital Play network.

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