Port Douglas to host the third season of Love Island Australia in 2021

The location for the third season of Love Island Australia has been set, and filming will begin in the tropical Queensland hotspot later this year, with “the hottest Australians” set to spark romance in luxury villas on the Great Barrier Reef.

Queensland’s tropical north will host the new season of dating juggernaut Love Island Australia.

In the latest filming coup for Far North Queensland, the third season of the racy reality series, previously filmed in Spain and Fiji, will shift to Port Douglas, with filming due to begin later this year.

Queensland presenter Sophie Monk will return as host of the Love Island franchise, which is broadcast in more than 20 countries and will see a cast of singles mingle in a luxe new villa, set in the rainforest and on the Great Barrier Reef.

Love Island Australia contestants in 2019. Picture: Supplied by Channel 9

“What better location, than Port Douglas, for one of the sexiest shows on Australian TV screens,” said ITV Studios Australia’s Head of Content, Beth Hart.

“Showcasing the incredible surroundings that are second-to-none, we will be bringing to viewers, not only the hottest Australians, but the hottest scenery in the world.”

Secured for the state through Screen Queensland’s Production Attraction Strategy, chief executive Kylie Munnich expected the production to inject $8.6 million into Queensland’s economy and create more than 100 jobs for local crew.

Love Island joins a growing list of reality series that have shifted production to Queensland in the past 12 months, including Australian Survivor filming in Cloncurry in Outback Queensland and Holey Moley in Redland City.

An aerial view of Port Douglas and Rex Smeal Park. Picture: Supplied.

“The economic boost to regional centres due to these large-scale reality formats coming to town is significant; this is another fantastic result for Queensland,” Ms Munnich said.

“This announcement further confirms the growth of Far North Queensland as a significant film and TV hub for the state, growth to be aided by the construction of a studio facility in Cairns, to be operational by early 2022.”

Other productions choosing the Far North this past year include Netflix teen series, Dive Club, feature film This Little Love of Mine, and Matchbox Pictures’ Irreverent, to start production next month.

Casting is underway this month with ITV looking for singles aged between 19 and 32 with “smile, sex appeal and sass” to become Islanders.

“Love Island is such a fun and irresistible show and you can’t help but get wrapped up in all the flirting, dating and dramas,” said Monk, who is returning as host for the third time.

“I can’t wait to join a whole new group of girls and guys looking for love, and filming in my hometown of Queensland is an added bonus for me as well, as Port Douglas is one of my favourite places to visit.”