‘Love Island’ Star Arielle Vandenberg Talks ‘Really Special’ Relationship With Fiance Matt Cutshall Amid COVID Breakups (Exclusive)

Arielle Vandenberg returns Monday night to host the hotly anticipated second season of the CBS summer hit Love Island and letting PopCulture.com in on what she’s learned most about love, especially when it comes to her own relationship with fellow actor and social media star, Matt Cutshall. In an interview for our series, PopCulture @ Home, the 33-year-old California native who got engaged last September to her best friend admits communication plays a valuable role in staying together, particularly during a pandemic forcing many couples to confront more than meets the eye.

“Taking time to be patient with each other and hear each other is so important,” Vandenberg said. “I mean, most people don’t spend that much time with each other, so the fact that we’re forced to stay inside and whatnot, it’s such a different, that’s a different life.”

Since the start of lockdown stemming from the coronavirus pandemic, divorce rates between married couples have seen a spike, according to reports from Fox News. Thousands across the U.S. have not only split up while staying home together, but several celebrities from the likes of Kelly Clarkson and Brandon Blackstock, to Jennifer Grey and Clark Gregg, and most recently Miley Cyrus and Cody Simpson, have also called it quits.

“You really have to be respectful of everyone’s space and time and what I think Matt and I actually have done really well during all of this is, I know when he needs to be alone and I’m okay with that,” she said. “I don’t take offense to it or something. I feel like everyone thinks about themselves. They go, ‘Oh, did I do something wrong? Why aren’t you, why aren’t you, why aren’t you?’ No, you’ve been together for so long they probably just need a breather to think for themselves.”

Vandenberg places immense value on communication between her and Cutshall, admitting how it’s essential to hear each other out and not only during a pandemic. “It’s so important to listen to each other. It’s so important to actually take what someone is saying and just leaving it there. Not being like, ‘What did I do?’”

She adds how that is an element she and Cutshall have “definitely” taken away from being together in quarantine. “We just respect each other’s space and time,” she said. “I mean, we hang out so much anyway that it’s not an hour away from each other, I’m not like, ‘Where are you?’ I’m like, ‘Good. I’m going to go over here and do something and he’s going to go play video games or whatever.’”

Vandenberg calls their relationship a “really special” one. “We should all not take this time for granted,” she said. “We’re with our friends or we’re with our person. I feel so bad for people that are just alone. But if you’re with somebody, just cherish those moments — you got to find the silver lining.”

The former Vine star, who has amassed more than 1.3 million followers on Instagram thanks to her refreshing comedy hijinks, has found her own silver lining amid the pandemic by making others laugh with the help of her fiancé, Cutshall. The two have created an inspiring collection of laugh out loud videos that have not only racked up hundreds of thousands of views but glittery attention from celebrities like Jennifer Aniston and Rita Wilson.

“[Matt and I will] be just together, and then all of a sudden this random character will come out and I will play a random character for like an hour and it happens naturally. And then we go, ‘We have to shoot that,’” Vandenberg said. “Or something that’s super relatable will happen that happens to everyone and we go, ‘Okay, let’s shoot that. But let’s heighten it,’ or, ‘Let’s do this and make it more of a thing.’ It kind of just comes from real life and our everyday shenanigans.”

One of Vandenberg’s new funny picks among their collection is the “COVID bra,” where she suspects her fiancé of cheating on her with another woman. “If you haven’t seen, that’s one of my favorite videos we’ve done and we just posted it — or he just posted it on his Instagram. We were laughing hard while filming that. I was like, ‘I can’t do this.’ I kept laughing,” she said.

While the host of Love Island doesn’t exactly have a hot take on all the breakups happening between high profile couples and many across the states, she understands how these things can just happen in a strained time like COVID forcing couples to stay cooped up because “things come out” when stuck in closer than usual proximities. But while things might not be so hot between thousands of couples right now, she is most positive true love will be found this season on the CBS series with its cast of singles.

“I am definitely optimistic about the cast. I mean, how could you not fall in love with these people? Did you see their faces? I’m so confused with the casting because I’m like, ‘They’re so charming, so beautiful.’”

Love Island kicks off with a two-hour season premiere Monday, Aug. 24 on CBS at 8 p.m. ET and will air nightly on the network at 9 p.m. ET. Viewers can also tune into a two-hour episode each Saturday at. 8 p.m. ET featuring the best moments of the week, exclusive interviews and never-before-seen footage. For more on the show, Arielle Vandenberg and all your reality TV coverage, keep it locked to PopCulture.com.