Ariana Madix Has So Moved on from All That – Inside Her New Reality, Relationship and What’s Next

When Ariana Madix steps in front of the camera for her People StyleWatch cover shoot, Beyoncé’s “Diva” blasts through the speakers. And while she’s spent the last 11 years of her life on one of the most high-octane Bravo shows, starred as Roxie Hart on Broadway’s Chicago and landed a hosting gig on Love Island USA, Madix is anything but a diva.

Since her debut on Vanderpump Rules in 2013, Madix has been reborn. Eleven seasons, countless standoffs, one sandwich shop, a revolving door of friends and frenemies and one of the biggest cheating scandals to ever hit reality TV (you know, the one that rhymes with Schmandoval) later, she’s found a new level of confidence that’s manifested in her career. But to hear Madix tell it, her road to success wasn’t paved by drama, sensational headlines or even a cheating ex.

“It’s funny, because it probably seems like things happen for me overnight if you didn’t know me or you weren’t close to me,” she says of her recent wins. “When it comes to my team, I’ve had the same manager since before I was ever on Vanderpump Rules, and we’ve worked our butts off for almost 15 years.” 

“While things maybe weren’t playing out in the public eye, there were always balls in the court,” she adds. “I’ve never had anyone else as part of the focus of what I want to do with my life.”

That team is busy cheering her on during her PSW shoot in Los Angeles. She laughs and jokes with her glam squad — her hairstylist, Clayton Hawkins, holds a bedazzled blow dryer as a wind machine and her makeup artist, Afton Williams, touches up her gloss as she mouths the words to the hot girl anthems playing on shuffle. 

“I feel – at almost 40 – like my true self,” she says. “I’m surrounded by such amazing friends and family. It feels really good to be in a position where I’m able to do what I love and make a living doing it. Being in this business for many, many years, it’s taken a long time to get to that point, and I feel really lucky.”The No. 1 Girl in The Group

In March 2023, Vanderpump Rules fans were rocked when news broke about Madix’s partner of nine years, Tom Sandoval, having an affair with her friend and co-star. When it comes to how she looks back at the event that shook the pop culture zeitgeist, Madix has one simple and final response – “I don’t.”

“I hate that name too,” she says of the infamous “Scandoval” moniker. “That word has never come out of my mouth.” 

“Even when someone said it to me in regards to something I was wearing, I never said it back,” she adds, referencing her iconic season 10 reunion look featuring MONOT's crop jacket and cutout long pencil skirt, which many fans have called her “revenge dress.”

In November 2024, Bravo announced VPR would be rebooting its cast with fresh faces after an explosive season 11 finale, a production break and months of speculation. At the time, a source told PEOPLE that the network felt they needed to move on with a new group because there were “so many fractions” among the cast.

“Everyone was still stuck in their feelings and refusing to bend. The network felt there was no path forward with the group in that capacity,” the insider added.

Either way, “I don’t think I was ever going to go back to Vanderpump Rules. That’s the first time I’ve ever said that publicly, but I was never going to,” Madix reveals.

“It just didn’t feel right. Not in any sort of rude way, not in a professional, ‘We don’t need this,’ not in a, ‘I’m too good for this’, but it just didn’t feel right,” she explains. “If I did go back, I wouldn’t have been able to do the job that would make a good show. And so it just wasn’t going to make sense, the story didn’t make sense.”

During that break, Madix prioritized her mental health. She feared that returning meant she would put herself back in a situation that could negate all the healing she focused on.