Sammy Root entering the Love Island: All Stars 2025 villa as a bombshell shocked absolutely no one, let's be honest. Love Island bosses might be skilled at bringing these Islanders back, but keeping their identities hidden from fans and press, not so much.
We'd heard whisperings of Sammy signing on to the second series, but as soon as we watched TOWIE's Elma Pazar strutting into the villa as an OG, we pretty much knew he was South-Africa-bound. As if ITV would ever miss out on such a golden reality telly crossover opportunity.
And we were right; the Love Island 2023 winner turned TOWIE star Sammy sauntered into the All Stars villa alongside Casa Amor babe, Danielle Sellers on Wednesday 29 January and the bombshells invited Elma and Curtis Pritchard to spend the night with them in the Hideaway. And, yeah, it was weird.
While Curtis and Danielle didn't exactly work out, it was the beginning of a stunning fairytale for Elma and Sammy and the pair made it all the way to the final together, finishing in fifth place. And best of all, they're still together and have reportedly already returned to TOWIE filming as an official item.
Here's everything you need to know about the Love Island and TOWIE star...
Who is Sammy Root?
Sammy is a Love Island winner turned The Only Way is Essex star who also dabbles in the world of influencing.
How old is Sammy Root?
Samy is 23 years old, ten years younger than his TOWIE queen Elma.
What happened when Sammy Root was on Love Island: All Stars 2025?
We all knew that Sammy was going to be a bombshell on All Stars and on day 16, he rocked up and proved us right.
He joined the villa alongside Danielle where they shared a double date with Elma and Curtis.
Sammy coupled up with Elma from the get-go and they stayed together all the way until day 36, where they finished in fifth place.
Although the romance was smooth-sailing for Sammy and Elma, they bickered with one couple in particular nearly every episode. After Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu kissed Sammy during the heart rate challenge, Elma was left fuming and Sammy confused.
Although Ekin-Su apologised for her actions, Elma and Sammy constantly found themselves at odds with Ekin-Su and Curtis.
Both couples couldn't help themselves and there would be rows over dinners, clashes during challenges and shady remarks from all four Islanders.
What happened when Sammy Root was on Love Island 2023?
Sammy entered the villa on day four of Love Island 2023. In his first appearance, Sammy chose to take three Islanders on dates - Jess, Molly Marsh and Ella Thomas.
There is np denying that Sammy had his head turned by pretty much every bombshell that sauntered through the villa doors but at the end of the day he always went back to Jess.
The couple ended up winning the show, beating Whitney Adebyao and Lochan Nowacki who came in second place (and are still together, btw).
Who was Sammy coupled up with on Love Island 2023?
Sammy stayed coupled up with Jess until a shock recoupling forced them apart, and he started getting to know Mal Nicol.
When Mal was sent home, Sammy was introduced to six more girls in Casa Amor. He kissed both Gabby Jeffrey and Amber Wise, choosing to recouple with 19-year-old Amber.
However, the pair didn’t last, and Sammy quickly returned to Jess.
Are Sammy and Jess still together?
Unfortunately not.
Three months after winning series 10, Sammy confirmed they had split on Instagram, saying, 'We had a private conversation regarding our relationship but this was left up in the air as Jess is still away and we haven't had a chance to speak in person.
'For me to then see today via the media that we had officially broken up came as a total shock. To be totally clear - I at least wanted a face to face conversation to see if our relationship could be saved and felt this would be the respectful way forward.'
He went on to say, 'We had the most incredible experience winning Love Island and l genuinely saw a future with Jess. I was committed and respectful to our relationship. Unfortunately, things don’t always work out the way you’d hoped.
'Despite how this has all played out today, I think Jess is an amazing woman and genuinely wish her all the best.'
What does Sammy Root do?
Before entering the villa, Sammy was a project manager. Nowadays, he's an influencer and a TOWIE star.
When did Sammy Root join TOWIE?
In July 2024 it came to light that Sammy was following in the footsteps of Ella Barnes and would be joining TOWIE for series 34, where he was introduced as one of Roman Hackett's besties and went on a date with Livvy Jay.
Who is Sammy Root dating?
Elma, obv. Or at least, we think so...
What happened with Sammy Root and Elma Pazar on TOWIE?
WELL, Elma claimed that there was nothing between the two, especially after it was revealed he was going on a date with Livvy, but we all saw the Christmas special, right?
What happened with Sammy Root and Livvy Jay on TOWIE?
Newbie Livvy had a cute little dalliance with Sammy on the show. They went on a date, but there wasn't much of a spark there.
Does Sammy Root have Instagram?
Yes, and it’s @sammyroot_.