Who is Marco Donatelli from season 5 of ‘Love Island: USA’?

If you’ve kept up with season five of Love Island: USA, you would know that Marco Donatelli is one of the season’s most prominent islanders. Entering the villa on day one and pursuing a not-so-glamorous relationship with Destiny Zammarra Davis, then forming a genuine connection with day-two arrival Hannah Wright, Marco’s behavior on the show has been controversial (to say the least).

With his questionable actions causing islanders and viewers alike to have varying opinions, is the polarizing personality we see on our television screens who Marco truly is on the inside? We took a deep dive into Marco’s life beyond the villa, discovering some sides to him that have yet to make an appearance on the beloved reality series.

What you should know about Love Island USA‘s Marco Donatelli

Marco was born in Youngstown, Ohio on October 27th, 2000, making him just 22 years old during his Love Island journey, however, this midwest man is a beach boy at heart. The Ohio native lives in Boca Raton, Florida, studying pre-physical therapy at Florida Atlantic University. 

While he is a full-time student, Marco makes a living off of his social media success, which took off in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. With over 65k followers on the platform, Marco pursues all forms of content creation (even modeling), consistently using his good looks to his advantage. In an exclusive interview with E! News, he even shared how a few social media photos turned into a modeling career.

“I got into modeling with the help of one of my friends who lives in the same area as me. We started taking pictures of each other and posting them on our socials and slowly building the following… I kept taking cool pictures, trying to travel and meet all my other friends I already knew on social media. I kept hitting platforms, and then I got invited to New York City for a Calvin Klein photoshoot… I fell in love with the camera, and the camera fell in love with me”

After “[falling] in love with the camera” Marco admitted to being interested in trying his hand at acting in the future.

“I want to find my place among all other stars in the film industry. I think I have the edge because I know that if you want to be the best, you need to play the part (pun intended), but even though it’s a fascinating avenue for exploration, it will be an entirely new experience and challenge… I believe acting is a unique form of expression. You need to be able to form a different identity or behave like someone you aren’t when you play a role. As a model, I am always typecast as a jock, and I usually model sportswear or underwear… I just think that it’s a great challenge. You try to work your mind and body and take everything to the next level to play the role, and if you’re able to do it successfully, it’s pretty amazing.”

With goals of being an actor and wanting to grow his various social media platforms, one has to wonder whether Donatelli actually came to Love Island: USA to find his future wife. Regardless of his intentions, it’s impossible to deny the connection Marco made with fellow contestant Hannah Wright, which is seriously to die for.

Unfortunately, things were shaken up for Marco and Hannah when a shocking twist revealed that Marco’s ex-girlfriend officially made it to Fiji halfway through the infamous Casa Amor twist, ready to make a splash.

While some viewers were living for this juicy drama, many took to Twitter to share their dissatisfaction with the show’s producers, expressing that they have been especially cruel this season:

“inviting Marco’s ex during casa week is messyyyyy #LoveIslandUSA,” @graftharder wrote.

“They trying to break up Marco and Hannah bad 😂😂 #LoveIslandUSA,” @__Timidbeauty wrote.

“I’ve been secretly rooting for Marco and Hannah so I’m not feeling this whole bringing in his ex thing #LoveIslandUSA,” @deadraaaaa_ wrote.

With his ex-girlfriend entering the villa, potentially putting his lovey-dovey relationship with Hannah Wright at risk, will this be the end of one of this season’s strongest couples? Tune in to the fifth season of Peacock’s Love Island USA to find out for yourself.