Ekin‑Su Cülcüloğlu, the Love Island alum who has spoken publicly about a period of severe distress after appearing on Celebrity Big Brother, has been announced as a cast member on Netflix’s Inside: USA, which is set to premiere Sept. 21.
The series, based on a format created by U.K. YouTube group the Sidemen, brings internet personalities and celebrities together under one roof to be filmed round the clock and compete in challenges for a shared cash prize. The program adds a competitive element to the confined‑house formula by requiring contestants to cooperate on tasks while protecting the prize fund; even basic necessities can carry a cost for participants.
Producers said the U.S. edition will feature a mix of reality and online stars. Alongside Cülcüloğlu, announced participants include Selling Sunset alum Breana "Bre" Tiesi and digital creators such as Sketch, Jay Cinco, Sydney Thomas and Max Fosh.
Cülcüloğlu, 31, was evicted fourth from ITV’s Celebrity Big Brother in March 2024 after fellow housemates accused her of being inauthentic and performing for cameras. She has since described receiving abusive messages and death threats after the show aired and has spoken about the impact on her mental health. On Jamie Laing’s Great Company podcast earlier this year, she said she felt "worthless" going into the Big Brother house and that the experience contributed to a profound low point.
She recounted being overwhelmed on return to her flat, saying she "burst into tears for a good three hours" and experienced dissociative feelings. Cülcüloğlu told the podcast that a concerned friend urged her to seek therapy, and that sessions helped her begin to recover. She quoted a therapist advising a period of self‑care and urging her to speak openly about her experience; when she did, she said it "felt like a weight off my shoulders."
In remarks about her path to that low point, Cülcüloğlu linked the episode in part to a breakup from her Love Island partner Davide Sanclimenti and to back‑to‑back reality commitments, saying she had travelled from Los Angeles to take part in Big Brother after competing on the U.S. edition of The Traitors and that it was the "wrong show, wrong time" for her mentally.
Inside: USA will be streamed by Netflix and follows a growing trend of competitive reality formats that blend social gameplay, continuous filming and task‑based challenges. The Sidemen’s original format, which amassed popularity through the creators’ large online followings in the U.K., has been adapted to different markets, and the U.S. version emphasizes collaborations between established reality figures and digital creators.
Cülcüloğlu rose to prominence on Love Island and has since appeared on multiple reality projects in international markets. Her decision to join Inside: USA comes after months in which she publicly addressed online abuse and sought professional support. Representatives for Netflix and for Cülcüloğlu did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Inside: USA’s mix of influencers and reality personalities will be watched for how the competitive structure affects house dynamics and for whether the format’s producers alter safeguards or support for contestants given the public scrutiny of past reality television controversies. The series’ Sept. 21 launch will mark the next major international iteration of the Sidemen format on a global streaming platform.