Laura Whitmore has signed a £500,000 deal to front the upcoming season of Love Island.
The hit ITV2 programme officially opened applications at the beginning of the year, five months after Millie Court and Liam Reardon were crowned winners.
Previous reports suggested that bosses were considering replacing the 36-year-old presenter with the likes of Maya Jama and former contestant Maura Higgins but Laura is officially making a comeback.
An ITV spokesperson told Metro.co.uk: ‘Laura will be returning to host the forthcoming series of Love Island.’
With the show set to make its grand return in the next few months, fans have been keeping themselves updated over its future.
And it looks like viewers can expect some big changes, one of them being a brand new villa.
The beloved dating show was previously filmed at a property near Sant Llorenc des Cardassar, in the east of the Spanish island, however, it became unavailable this time around, forcing chiefs to look for a replacement location.
During a briefing, ITV’s managing director of media and entertainment Kevin Lygo explained: ‘We didn’t own it, we rented it, and we are choosing a new house for this summer so that is all secrecy. It is going to be marvellous.’
The annual series – which first made its debut in 2015 – will reportedly be accepting applications from non-binary contestants in what could be the biggest shake-up yet.
In response to the claims, a Love Island spokesperson told Metro.co.uk: ‘The only stipulations are that applicants are over 18, single and looking for love.’
Last year, an ITV boss addressed the ongoing diversity issue and said that including gay islanders could present ‘logistical difficulties’.
Speaking to RadioTimes.com in June, Amanda Stavri said: ‘In terms of gay Islanders, I think the main challenge is regarding the format of Love Island.
‘There’s a sort of logistical difficulty because although Islanders don’t have to be 100% straight, the format must sort of give [the] Islanders an equal choice when coupling up.’
Metro.co.uk has reached out to Laura Whitmore’s reps for comment.
Love Island returns to ITV2 later this year, and past episodes are available to watch on ITV Hub.
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