Exclusive Interview with Dominique Price from ‘Temptation Island’
*SPOILERS AHEAD FOR TEMPTATION ISLAND SEASON 2 FINALE AND REUNION SPECIAL*
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Temptation Island is one of the best reality TV shows this year. The reboot of the beloved Fox hit from the early 2000s follows four dating couples at the most vulnerable time in their relationship. They travel together to Maui, but are soon split apart as they move into separate houses with 12 attractive singles of the opposite sex. At the end of the show, each couple will decide whether to stay together, leave the island with someone new, or leave completely alone.
Dominique Price is one of the singles on this current season of the show. Dominique came to Temptation Island wanting to meet the right woman that he can enjoy all the sun and sand in California with. I got the chance to talk to Dominique about how he got cast on the show, whether or not he had his eye on Kate from the very beginning, why he told her to go home alone, what happened with their relationship after they left the island and more. Keep reading to see what he had to say!
How did you get cast on Temptation Island?
I don’t know to be honest. The only show I ever applied to was The Bachelorette and I always made it to the final round, but I never quite made it inside the house. Then I got a text saying, “You’d be perfect for this show” and I was like, “What show is it?” And then they told me. I also had a friend that was on last season so he was like, “Yo, just do it. It’ll be cool.”
So you’ve had a desire to do reality TV for a while. Is it more about trying to find the right person to be with or is it about the TV part of it?
No, I never thought I would do reality TV to be honest. It just happened. [With] The Bachelorette, I was like, “Whatever. Maybe I’ll try something different.” Dating in LA sucks so maybe I’ll find it on TV. If I don’t find it there, maybe someone will notice me.
Gotcha. You were not familiar with Temptation Island before you got cast, so did you go back and watch season one to see what twists and turns they might throw at you?
Yeah, definitely. My friend was on the first season so I was sort of familiar with it, so it made it easier to watch it. But yeah, season one and season two this year are totally different [laughs]. I would have killed season one.
The first time we get to meet the singles, they have you guys walk out in front of couples and introduce yourselves. If I remember correctly, you said on Instagram that you didn’t pick the line that you ended up saying. How would you have introduced yourself if it had been your choice?
Oh, I have the best last name. My last name is Price. My handle is @dpriceisright, so I was going to be like, “Hey my name is Dom. I’ll make you leave the guy on your left to come be with Mr. Right.”
That’s a good one.
But they were like, “No, we want to do something with your occupation.” I was like, “Yeah that’s cool too.”
Did they tell most people what to say that night or did most people come up with it on their own?
They told everyone what to say that night.
Really? Interesting.
That’s why I was so nervous because we were all scripted and some of us kept getting line changes. We were literally in the car an hour before trying to study this one line.
Wow, that’s crazy. Was Kate the girl that you immediately had your eye on that night or did one of the other girls catch your eye at first?
Honestly, the first night, I didn’t even speak to Kate. I didn’t get a chance to. So I had my eyes set on Sonic [Esonica]. And then [with] Kate, me and her worked out in the morning and that’s when we got closer. But my first contact was with Sonic.
And it just wasn’t there or you felt it with Kate more than Sonic?
With Sonic, we would have been better off the show, but me and her are the same person. We have the same birthday and we were born on the same date.
That’s crazy.
Yeah, it’s crazy. So like stupid sh*t she would say and I couldn’t defend myself because I probably would have got kicked off. We’re both Geminis. We both like to be right. So I was like, “No, I need to stay away from her.”
Kate had a really hard time those first couple of episodes with what she was seeing in her bonfire clips and just opening herself up to the Temptation Island experience in general. How did you go about being sympathetic to what she was going through and being supportive of her but also wanting to get to know her better so that you could see whether or not there was a real romantic connection there?
Yeah. With Kate, honestly, the first date we had, she talked about her boyfriend and then after that I told her, “We’re not ever talking about him again.” She literally just talked to the two Chrises about her relationship status. With me, it was more so we would be connected through fitness and I was all about, “So you’re better than your boyfriend. He doesn’t deserve you. You should do this and do this.” I always tried to motivate her and push her like, “Oh you’re beautiful” and all that stuff. Obviously it took some time, but eventually she saw more from me.
Because you said, “I don’t really want to talk about your boyfriend anymore after this,” did she ever let you know what she was seeing from David in the bonfire clips or was that off the table for you guys?
Yeah, she told me what was happening during the clips. But once again, I was just like, “You shouldn’t be here. He doesn’t deserve you. You’re way better than him. I don’t even know why you’re still with him or even thinking about him.”
Yeah. It took a long time for Kate to come around and actually reciprocate your feelings, or at least that’s how it looked to us viewers. Was that actually how it felt to you or were there moments happening “off screen” that made you feel confident with where you guys were at in your relationship and that it would get there at some point?
Yeah, it seemed like forever on TV, but it really wasn’t. It was more so… like I knew I would be on the final date even though it didn’t look that way. But she’s never had a black guy. The thing with the whole process was I think that she was just scared; she never grew up around black people so she didn’t want her family to see her with a black guy. That was everyone’s opinion from the house, that was what I was getting. But I knew behind closed doors, I was okay because obviously our conversations outside of closed doors were okay. But the whole thing was with us being on TV, like she became so freaking awkward when the cameras came next to her and it made me look bad looking at it now.
Interesting. I would have never picked up that that was the reason. Like I said, it just seemed so slow and that it took until final dates for something really happening.
I think episode 5 when I was like, “Yo send me home, send me home,” she was like, “Dom, I really like you. I get excited when I’m near you.” She literally said, “You make me wet every time I see you” and then that’s what I said, “Okay, so if you’re saying all this sh*t, why are you sending other people on dates and you’re not trying to make a better connection with me? You can’t keep playing a game. Send me home because I don’t want to keep doing this anymore.” Behind camera, they didn’t show it, but she was like, “No, I’m not gonna send you home” and then she would start crying and then production had to come in and talk to me because I was literally about to fight everyone. I was like, “Get me the f*ck off this island.”
Wow. Kind of going off of that, is there a moment from filming that didn’t air that you wish that we as viewers had gotten to see, whether it be from a date or just something that happened between you and Kate at the villa? Would that moment be it?
Yeah, that would be it. And there was one point where Ashley G., after she and KB became friend-zoned, she threw a speeding dating date and she asked me out on a date and I said no. She then went to all the girls and was like, “Dom’s here for all of the wrong reasons” and then Kate told me her and Ashley G. got in a fight because I told her that I was there for Kate and Kate told her, “No, he’s here for me,” and then I guess production came in with that as well.
Interesting. I feel like, at least in your house, there was so much more in-villa fighting than there was in season one.
Nah, I heard last year there was way more fights.
Really?
Yeah. I heard last year there was way more fights. I think this year they showed the drama and the acting and all the fake drama and sh*t. They highlighted the actors and actresses who will put on a show in front of the camera instead of the real genuine connections.
So we’re going to talk a little spoilers. You were doing an IG story Q&A last week and you said that you told Kate that you thought she should go home alone. I’m curious: why did you tell her that?
Because I’m a real guy. Like to me, I thought us going [home] together meant that we were official official. And I’m like, “No.” I told her like, “No, you got a lot of work to do. You really have to go home to your boyfriend, you have to move all your stuff. You don’t have a job, you don’t have a place to stay. I don’t think the best thing would be us being together right now. I’m gonna help you and eventually I plan on making things happen, but right now it’s best if we just go as friends.”
If you hadn’t told her that, do you think she would have asked you to stay at the bonfire and that you would have gone home together?
Yeah, for sure. Instead of us leaving together officially, she made production make me stay with her. So after the reunion, she came right to my hotel and we spent the whole week together in Hawaii by ourselves, just so she could see if it was real or not.
Yeah, I was gonna ask you about that too, because I saw that you mentioned that in your Q&A too. What was that week with her like?
Obviously, it was real good. There was no cameras, so we were just having normal conversations. It was a great time, honestly. Me and Kate, we really connected. We’re pretty much the same person, like we do everything the same, so it was great to just spend time with her, no cameras, and do a lot of cuddling and stuff.
But you guys are not on speaking terms right now? I know I saw that you posted that she blocked you on Instagram. Is that right?
Yeah. Once she went back to Jersey and I went back to LA, we talked every day for maybe two or three months. She’d literally be in bed with David and be like, “Hey babe, I can’t sleep” and then she’d go upstairs to a different room and we’d FaceTime. But the closer we got to the reunion is when I think he made his move to try to make up for his mistakes.
Interesting.
So then she would ghost me and then start talking to him. I think for the reunion, a lot of girls came out being like, “Yo, I hooked up with David outside of the show” and he lied for f*cking four hours about how he didn’t. Then she got mad at him again and she almost came over to my house that week cause she was staying with him, but he purchased her ticket home so she had to go home. It must have been a week later that she went right back to him and then she blocked me. He also blocked me, and then they also blocked Sam as well.
That’s crazy. What has watching Temptation Island been like for you?
It’s been different. I don’t like the way editing went this year to be honest. You didn’t see the real genuine connections. It was literally just actors and actresses getting TV time. Personally, I didn’t like it, especially the way they made me look.
Do you have any regrets about going on the show or are you happy with how things ended and the experience that you had?
I’m happy with the experience I had. I met some amazing people [and made] some really good connections. I stayed friends with pretty much all the guys and Ashley G. and Ashley H. live in LA so we’ve been kicking it together. So yeah, I have no regrets at all.
Do you view relationships and dating differently after having been on the show?
Kate for sure really helped me out. Once I got back from the show, and then being around other females, I have been way more picky and selective. Before going on the show, I gave up on dating. I was like, “Nah these girls suck.” And then Kate helped me to see that – before she got back with David of course. And now I just realize all of that is bullshit.
Last question – our website is called Talk Nerdy with us because we all have some kind of inner nerd so what is something you are currently nerding out about?
Oh, Victorious on Netflix.
I saw that on your Instagram story. Is this your first time watching it?
No, but I haven’t watched all of the episodes but now I get to watch all of the episodes. That and Shark Tank. I’m a huge Shark Tank guy.
Make sure you follow Dominique on Twitter and Instagram.