The lawsuit says the allegation was false and cost him income while on leave.
COLUMBUS, OH — A contestant on Netflix’s “Love Is Blind” has sued an Ohio woman for defamation after she accused him on social media of sexual assault, a claim he denies. The lawsuit says the posts spread widely online and triggered professional fallout as the newest season began streaming.
The case lands at a tense intersection of reality TV fame and the speed of online accusations, where clips can reach hundreds of thousands of viewers before any formal investigation is announced. The contestant, Steven Sunday, says he was placed on paid leave from his finance job at an insurance company and cannot earn commission income while on leave. The woman he is suing, Elisha Watts, has said publicly that she did not file a police report. Police in Columbus and Reynoldsburg told a local TV station they had no reports involving Sunday tied to the allegation.
The lawsuit, filed on Sunday’s behalf, centers on statements Watts posted on TikTok and other platforms after Sunday was publicly identified as part of the cast for Season 10 of the dating show, which this year is set in Ohio. In one TikTok video posted last month, Watts said she was “the girl” who had posted that Sunday sexually assaulted her. A Columbus TV station reported the video had been viewed more than 980,000 times. Sunday’s lawsuit calls the allegation “unequivocally false” and says Watts’ posts went beyond a single claim, describing him as dangerous and repeating an allegation that he tried to drug women.
In his complaint, Sunday describes a timeline that begins well before the show’s premiere. The lawsuit says he and Watts met on the dating app Bumble and communicated through social media beginning in October 2024. The complaint says they met in person at Watts’ apartment in May 2025 and engaged in what the lawsuit describes as a consensual sexual act. The filing also alleges that Watts agreed to have the encounter recorded on video. Sunday says he was at the apartment for about an hour and a half, then left, and the two had no further contact after that meeting.
The lawsuit says the dispute did not become public until much later, after Sunday’s participation in the series became known. When cast details surfaced this winter, Watts posted about him on social media and later made a TikTok video repeating the claim. The complaint includes what it describes as examples of those posts and argues that the statements were presented as facts to a broad audience. It also says the posts spread quickly and were discussed by other users and accounts, adding to the reach and intensity of the allegations.
Watts has also posted that she did not file a police report, according to the local TV report. That point is central to how Sunday is framing his case. Columbus police confirmed to a local TV station that it found no sexual assault report involving Sunday. Reynoldsburg police, where a reported address connected to Sunday is located, also said it had no reports related to the allegations. The absence of a police report does not prove a claim is true or false, but Sunday’s lawsuit uses it to argue that Watts chose social media as the main forum for the accusation and that the posts damaged him without any criminal case being opened.
Sunday says the posts had immediate professional consequences. According to the reporting on the lawsuit, he was placed on paid leave from his finance job at an insurance company and believes the online claims played a major role in that decision. The lawsuit states that his job is commission-based and that being on leave prevents him from earning income during the period his employer reviews the situation. The complaint seeks compensation tied to reputational harm, emotional distress, and alleged financial losses, arguing that the damage continued as the show launched and he became more recognizable.
The lawsuit describes a step taken shortly before the court filing. A local TV station reported that a cease-and-desist letter was served on Feb. 8. The lawsuit says Watts continued posting after that, and that none of the posts at issue had been taken down before the case was filed. Sunday is asking the court for damages and other relief, arguing that the statements were made with knowledge they would spread and that they were harmful in a way that cannot be easily undone once widely shared.
Defamation claims can be difficult to prove, and the legal path often turns on precise wording, whether the statements are treated as factual assertions, and what can be shown about intent and harm. Sunday’s lawsuit is also shaped by the unusual visibility of reality TV, where cast members may have limited control over public perception once their names circulate online. In this case, Sunday is not suing the streaming service or the show’s producers. The complaint, as described in local reporting, targets Watts and focuses on the content of her posts and the alleged impact on his reputation and employment.
Watts has not publicly responded in court filings that were available through the reporting reviewed by local outlets, and her side of the story is largely known through what she has posted online. In her TikTok video, she described herself as the person behind earlier social media posts about the allegation and said seeing Sunday connected to the show brought the issue back to the surface. She has also referenced claims she said she had heard from others, including an allegation that he tried to drug women, which Sunday’s lawsuit denies.
The case also highlights a broader pattern in the age of viral video: disputes over intimate encounters can become public narratives shaped by clips, screenshots, and commentary, sometimes long after the events described. When that happens, a civil lawsuit can become the main arena for competing versions of events, especially when no criminal case is filed or no public record exists beyond social media posts. Sunday’s complaint presents a version of events that it says is supported by a consensual interaction and a recording he says was agreed to; Watts has posted online that she did not consent to being recorded, according to other reporting about the dispute.
The filings described by local outlets also connect the social media posts to alleged harm beyond embarrassment. Sunday says the accusations affected his ability to participate in normal work and public life as his name circulated more widely. For reality TV participants, reputational damage can also affect future media opportunities, sponsorships, and employment decisions, though those impacts can be hard to measure. Sunday is seeking compensation for what he describes as personal and professional damage that continued as the story spread across platforms and was discussed by others online.
At the same time, sexual assault allegations are often sensitive, and many people who report assaults never file police reports for a range of reasons, including fear of retaliation, concerns about being disbelieved, or the emotional difficulty of a legal process. In this case, Sunday’s lawsuit argues that Watts’ decision to go public with her claim, paired with the lawsuit’s assertion that the claim is false, crossed into defamation. The court will likely have to weigh the competing accounts, the language used in the posts, and what each side can support with evidence and testimony.
Local reporting said a first hearing in the case is scheduled for later this month. Attempts to contact Watts for comment included a visit to her home, where no one answered the door, according to the TV station’s report. The station also said it placed a call to Sunday’s attorney. It was not immediately clear from the reporting whether either side planned to make additional public statements beyond what has already been posted online and included in the lawsuit’s description of events.
The lawsuit arrives as “Love Is Blind” continues to draw intense online attention, with cast members often facing rapid scrutiny once episodes begin streaming and clips circulate. In this situation, the dispute is not about what aired on the show, but about an allegation tied to events that the lawsuit says occurred months before the season debuted. Sunday’s complaint frames the timing as a key point, arguing the allegation surfaced in a high-visibility moment when his identity and workplace could be quickly identified by viewers.
For now, the public record described by local outlets includes the allegation in a TikTok video and related posts, Sunday’s denial through a civil lawsuit, and police departments saying they have no report tied to the claim. The next major milestone will come at the initial court hearing later in February, when procedural steps could set the pace for motions, evidence exchanges, and any future dates.
Author note: Last updated February 15, 2026.