‘Love is Blind’ Bully Irina Apologizes For Her Awful Treatment of Zack Outside the Pods: “I So Mistreated Him and Shut Him Out”

Love Is Blind contestant Irina Solomonova has taken to Instagram to apologize for her horrendous behavior in the latest season of the Netflix hit. 

In the first drop of episodes, Solomonova felt an instant connection with Zack Goytowski, a 31-year-old criminal defense lawyer, and the two got engaged. However, things got messy when they exited the pods and Solomonva decided that she wasn’t attracted to him. 

Off the bat, she told him that he looked like a “cartoon character” and rejected his romantic advances. When Goytowski tried to have a serious conversation with her before their eventual break-up, she placed a pillow over her face and wouldn’t engage. 

Even in the pods, Solomonova built a “mean girl” reputation with her partner-in-crime Micah Lussier, who has also apologized for her behavior.

Together, the two would exchange rude looks and gossip about other contestants during sensitive moments throughout their love journeys. At one point, Solomonova even made a move on Lussier’s fiancé, Paul.

Needless to say, they don’t have many Love Is Blind viewers on their side – and the internet’s response to Solomonova’s apology says it all.

Solomonova began by saying, “I want to start off by saying sorry that this video is a little delayed. I really wanted to take some time to process everything that has been going on this past week and really get my thoughts together before I responded.”

The business owner continued, “The first thing I want to say is that I have privately apologized to the people that I have hurt and mistreated. Second of all, I wanted to say I am so, so sorry for the people that watched the show that felt frustrated, angry, hurt by the way that I was mistreating people on the show. It was very immature and naive of me in a lot of those situations.”

Solomonova lists her former cast members, including Zack and his new fiancé Bliss, and expresses remorse for the way she treated them. “I am genuinely so, so sorry. Truly, I want to add value to people and I want to make people feel seen, and who I was on the show was the complete, exact opposite of that person.”

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A post shared by Irina Solomonova (@irina_solo)

The contestant compared being on the show to “getting a mirror put in front of your face in the sense of seeing yourself from a different perspective.” She said, “That opened up so, so much to me and I’m still processing and going through everything that happened.”

Turning the tables to her former flame, Solomonova added, “Even Zack, he was so vulnerable with me and I so mistreated him and shut him out. And I hope that one day I get to share my experience and what was going on with me emotionally during that experience.”

The comment section of Solomonova’s apology video shows that the internet is not yet ready to forgive the contestant for her villainous behavior and her attempt to sabotage multiple relationships on the show. “Regardless of what you were going through during that experience, it doesn’t give you the right to treat people the way you did,” wrote one person. 

Another added, “The way you put down and belittled Zack was really difficult for many people to watch, especially anyone who has been bullied. You really wouldn’t care at all if not for all the backlash on yourself.” Others are saying that the statement didn’t feel “genuine” or “authentic.”

Now, Solomonova has limited the comments on her personal and business Instagram accounts. So, it looks like fans of the show will have to wait for the reunion episode to hear her answer for her crimes!

Love Is Blind is currently streaming on Netflix.