CBS reveals its Love Island host

CBS has found its Love Island host.

Actress and comedian Arielle Vandenberg will host the U.S. edition of the British reality TV sensation.

Vandenberg is a veteran of How I Met Your Mother, Meet the Browns, and Greek. “Watching Love Island is like watching your favorite romantic comedy five nights a week with your best friends…and Arielle would be the friend bringing the popcorn,” said CBS executive Sharon Vuong. “Aside from being a huge fan of the genre, she’s a gifted performer with an impressive resume across multiple mediums who has a genuine and unique connection with all of her fan.

Starting July 9, CBS will air Love Island five nights a week for five weeks. Still to be announced is a narrator for the show — a key role that is an often amusingly snarky part of the U.K. version.

For the uninitiated, Love Island begins with roughly five single men and women (dubbed “Islanders”) dropped in a tropical Fiji villa. The singles are paired up in a selection ceremony (“the coupling,” see clip below) where partners are chosen based on little more than their looks. These newly formed couples compete together in bawdy games and challenges, and sleep in the same bed. Their overall goal is to remain part of a committed couple as tempting new singles are gradually added to the villa, Islanders are given opportunities to break up and change partners, and fans vote out couples who aren’t considered worthy.

For more, read our exclusive interview with Love Island producer David Eilenberg answering all our burning questions about the U.S. version.

Related content:

• CBS braces for risqué Love Island as producer breaks silence on U.S. version
• A guide to watching the U.K. version of Love Island in the U.S.
• Love Island to premiere July 9 on CBS and air five nights a week