Where Are the Ladies From Hulu's 'Back in the Groove' Season 1 Now? Catching Up With the Cast
Published Nov. 28 2023, 5:17 p.m. ET
The Gist:
- Back in the Groove featured three women in their 40s who were presumably looking for love, or, at the very least, reality TV exposure for potentially launching careers/brands of their own after filming.
- While Steph left the show single, Brooke and Sparkle did leave the Dominican Republic resort romantically linked to someone they met there.
- It's unclear if they're still with the men, and Brooke has currently set her Instagram account to private. Sparkle and Steph seem to be still pursuing entertainment opportunities.
Hulu's reality dating show Back in the Groove doesn't shy away from its connection to the 1998 film starring Angela Bassett and Taye Diggs, How Stella Got Her Groove Back. In fact, the series even enlisted the help of Diggs to take on hosting duties for the program as it follows the journey of three women, like the titular Stella, in getting back into the swing of dating and pursuing romantic relationships.
If you're a fan of the show and want to know how the three women of Season 1 are faring after the series, here's what they're up to now.
'Back in the Groove' Season 1 — where are they now?
The eight-episode order from the Walt Disney company — which dropped on Hulu in December 2022 — followed three different women: 43-year-old Sparkle from Atlanta, 42-year-old Brooke from Los Angeles, and 41-year-old Steph from Miami.
The three women venture to The Groove Hotel, an all-inclusive resort in the Dominican Republic where they shack up with three different dudes half their age. Deadline wrote of the show's premise ahead of its premiere: "The goal is to rediscover their youth, live joyously, and hopefully find love with men half their age."
Steph Michaels
Steph, who calls herself "the hood 'I Love Lucy'" on her Instagram account, says that she is still living between New York City and Miami and in addition to being a reality TV star is a "holistic health mentor" and the owner of a company called Of Earth Organics.
In the series, Steph brought her son on as one of the surprise contestants looking to love up the two other women she shared her experience with. Although she ended up picking Leroy Mapp over Quentin Marquis Lloyd as the ultimate object of her desire (against her dad's wishes) Steph said she was going to stay single as she didn't want to be in a relationship just yet.
Brooke Mora
Some time after the first season, it would appear that Brooke decided to make her Instagram private. During her time on the series, Brooke was being courted by three separate dudes: Matt, Cru, and Gary, the latter of whom immediately quit the series after discovering she got matching tattoos with Cru.
Ultimately, she sent Matt packing away from the resort and it seems that she and Cru ended up together and are still together; as far as the public knows, the IFBB Bikini competition pro and Mr. Eaton are still an item. She's still fitness modeling and personal training.
Sparkle Hyche
"Sparkle the Stylist" formally announced with a press release she posted to her Instagram account that she would be exiting the beauty industry to exclusively work in entertainment. Per IMDb, she's also listed as a producer on a pair of projects in addition to her on-air personality for the popular reality TV series.
During filming of the series, Sparkle and Akio initially hit it off, but the former beautician started catching feelings for Steven, who she eventually decided to pick as her main squeeze by the end of the show's first season.
While it's unknown as to whether or not her and Steven are still an item, scrolling through her Instagram account doesn't seem to indicate that she's romantically linked with him, or anyone for that matter; most of her pictures and videos feature either her, or her beloved grandma Dezzie, who passed away in September of 2023.