How to Get Cast on ‘Love Is Blind’

“Love Is Blind” has an eye-catching premise: For 10 days, men and women go on speed dates, but the kicker is that they are unable to see one another. The contestants are put into pods where they can relax, drink wine, and chat—all while not having any physical interactions with their date. 

When a contestant decides they’ve found “the one,” they propose in the pod—still without seeing the person to whom they’re popping the question. Following the proposal, the two finally meet face-to-face and they’re whisked away on a tropical vacation. During this getaway, the contestants also meet the other engaged couples. Afterward, each pair moves into an apartment together; they also meet each other’s families. On the day of their wedding, the contestants meet at the altar and decide if they want to go through with the marriage or call it quits.

Husband-and-wife duo Nick and Vanessa Lachey will return as co-hosts for Season 8 alongside a new cast of singles searching for their forever love.

The women:

• Amanda, 43: District Retail Manager
• Ashley, 28: Client Success Manager
• Brittany, 35: Partnership Executive
• Casandra, 30: Hairstylist
• Kylie, 28: Medical Student
• Lauren, 31: Educational Sales
• Madison, 28: Artist
• Meg, 31: Oncology Nurse
• Molly, 30: Executive Assistant
• Monica, 28: Digital Marketing
• Sara, 29: Oncology Nurse
• Taylor, 32: Colonoscopy Nurse
• Tiera, 34: Marketing Strategist
• Vanessa, 31: Media Planner
• Virginia, 34: Healthcare Recruiter
• Yemi, 30: Product Sales Manager

The men:

• Adam, 33: Fashion Director / Co-Owner
• Alex, 29: Commercial Real Estate Broker
• Andrew, 27: Realtor
• Ben, 28: Developer
• Benji, 26: Entrepreneur / Realtor
• Brad, 35: Dentist
• Brian, 30: Wine Bar Owner
• Daniel, 30: Sales Account Executive
• David, 33: Medical Device Sales
• Devin, 29: Youth Director/Coach
• Hugo, 30: Marketing
• Joey, 35: Physician Associate
• Mason, 33: Cinematographer
• Mo, 35: Property Manager
• Scott, 34: Project Manager
• Tom, 38: Management Consultant

Donna A. Driscoll is the casting director for the series; she’s the head of casting at Kinetic Content and was twice nominated for an Emmy for outstanding casting for a reality program for “Love Is Blind” in 2020 and 2023. She previously put together the reality show ensembles of “Married at First Sight” (2015–2023), “The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On” (2022), and “Spy Games” (2020). She was also in the casting department of “Survivor,” “The Amazing Race,” and “Shear Genius.”

“The main thing that we’re always looking for are [real] people who have everything going for them in their life; they’re just missing that one piece. And so the intention of why they want to participate in the experiment is a huge factor,” Driscoll told us, adding that the show is searching for people who “want to find the love of their life more than they want to be on Netflix.”

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Driscoll noted that social media plays a big part in the decision-making process. “I actually get really excited when somebody isn’t present on social media, because it shows me that [gaining followers] isn’t [their goal] at the end of the show,” she said. “There’s almost like an innocence around it when somebody isn’t on social media, and it makes [them] more interesting." 

“But also, at the same time, I love social media and being able to see the lives that people are living," Driscoll added. "You know, you can see how full their life is. You can see all the people in their orbit. You can see if they love to travel and how they express themselves through fashion. All of these things are so fascinating to me, too."

At the end of the day, Driscoll is looking for authenticity and openness. “We aren’t going to ask you any trick questions," she said. "We’re talking about you, and you’re the professional when it comes to you. You’re the pro, and you’re the author of your story. So just have confidence and be willing to share [your story].” 

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, series creator Chris Coelen echoed that desire for sincerity. “We have a great casting department, and they reached out to people who they felt would be genuinely interested in this kind of commitment,” he explained. “I think that’s really key; we want people who aren’t just doing it for the attention. There’s certainly plenty of places for people who want to do stuff for the attention. We wanted to be really dealing with people who were genuinely interested in it.”

Those who want to take their shot at finding love on the series should fill out an application on the show’s website. All contestants must live in the city where the season is filming, so they can move in together following their experience in the pods and on the couples’ retreat. As Driscoll told IndieWire, once the season’s city has been picked, she and her team make their presence known. “The big job for us is to make sure that everyone within a 50-mile radius is talking about the fact that ‘Love Is Blind’ is casting there,” she said.

Casting will talk to an estimated 2,000 candidates on the phone before choosing 300 to 400 people for the Zoom interview stage. During this phase, the team dives deeper to ensure its eventual ensemble is truly there to find love. That means finding people who embody certain qualities that indicate they’re in it for the commitment. “Those indicators would be if they’ve done the work on themselves, healed from past relationships, truly understand what the meaning of love is, or have experienced what it is to love,” she said. Oh, and each applicant must complete a nearly 300-question compatibility questionnaire, too. “It’s very detailed, and we have a background check and psych evaluation before anyone moves forward to the pod.”

From there the casting team narrows its top 60 to 70 applicants down to 30, paying special attention to the potential connections. “The story really has to hone in on the connections or triangles that we’re going to follow.…” Driscoll added. “The main thing is to follow the most authentic love stories at the end of the day.”

The upcoming season was filmed in Minneapolis, Minnesota. And it’s clear the showrunners have an affinity for major metropolitan locales: “Love Is Blind” Season 1 was filmed in Atlanta, Season 2 in Chicago, Season 3 in Dallas, Season 4 in Seattle, Season 5 in Houston, Season 6 in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Season 7 was filmed in Washington, D.C.

Although Season 8 of “Love Is Blind” has already wrapped production, Seasons 9 and 10 are on the horizon. In July 2024, Kinetic Content Casting posted multiple casting notices on Instagram looking for singles in Miami, Atlanta, Columbus, Ohio, and the New England area (possibly revealing that the series may have its sights set on even more than the two confirmed seasons to come). 

Can you picture yourself as part of the future cast? If so, fill out an application here. (Be ready: There are more than 60 fields to fill in on the initial questionnaire!) You’ll also need to prepare a 15-second video and provide photos. 

For other reality show casting calls and auditions, check out our roundup of similar gigs. And keep an eye on our main casting call section for new opportunities as they arise.

Coelen said the key to choosing contestants is seeking out people who truly want to find love. “We picked participants, really, based on the feelings that they expressed and our judgment about whether or not they were really interested in exploring a lifelong relationship and/or getting married,” he explained to Express.

Driscoll echoed the sentiment in her conversation with ScreenRant. “Personality is huge, especially in an experiment like this,” she emphasized. “I know I sound repetitive, but I can’t say this enough: The most important detail to all of this is if they’re genuinely ready for a serious relationship and looking for a life partner.

“When I saw the success of the show, I was like, ‘Wow, we’re going to have to be really diligent about casting next season,’” she continued. “And I feel like we’re still having a lot of conversations about that; but I feel like, at that point, we’re going to have to incorporate people who are close to the candidates in their everyday life into the conversation at a certain point.”

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The Secrets to Getting Cast on ‘Love Is Blind,’ According to the Show’s CD

“Oftentimes—especially if people are fans of the experiment—they’ll try to be [like] what we have had in the experiment before, and that is the complete opposite of what we want,” Driscoll said in conversation with NBC10 Boston. “We really want you to be you, authentic you. That’s all we’re looking for. We would never want [to]—and we can’t—duplicate another person that was on the season prior. Just be yourself. And I know that’s hard to do sometimes especially under the circumstances…because we’re not looking for reality show characters. We’re not looking for models, influencers, actors—anything like that. We are looking for everyday people who want to find love more than they want to be on television.”

Driscoll also noted it’s important for potential contestants to pin down their “why” before heading into an interview with the casting team. If you can genuinely convey why it’s so important for you to find love in such an unconventional way, you just might secure your very own pod.

But who should apply in the first place? Season 2 fan favorite Deepti Vempati offered some helpful advice. “Don’t waste someone’s time,” she told Distractify. “So really think about if you want to be in a committed relationship with somebody. And if you think you have it in you, if you have the emotional capacity to…care about somebody in this type of setting, to go through something that is a very emotional process and to be filmed while doing it, [you should apply],” she said. She added that only those who are “ready to be in a committed relationship” and “take the leap of faith to get married to somebody in a short period of time” should consider joining the cast.