Are these days really the best of the “Vanderpump Rules” cast’s lives? It may depend on who you ask. But for Ariana Madix, the present has been a lesson in turning lemons into lemonade.
At the beginning of 2023, the reality TV star saw herself at the center of a scandal that captivated the pop culture zeitgeist: In March, she discovered that her “Vanderpump” co-star and partner of nine years, Tom Sandoval, had been having an affair with her close friend and fellow co-star, Raquel Leviss. “Scandoval,” as viewers dubbed it, played out publicly as everyone — including Madix, her cast mates and their producers — found out nearly all at the same time.
Nine months later, Madix’s life looks a bit different: She and Sandoval are no longer together (and neither are Sandoval and Leviss), but she’s in a new relationship, just wrapped an incredible run on this season’s “Dancing with the Stars,” has a new cocktail book out and just announced her first stint on Broadway.
“Vanderpump Rules” is still a big part of her life, too. Which presents a burning question: What’s in store for Season 11, out this January, after a drama-filled last season?
“I know it's going to be different,” Madix tells TODAY.com. “I know it's going to be weird, just because it felt weird and different for me.”
Madix reveals that she hasn't seen the new season but is judging based on what she experienced while shooting.
“I haven’t seen it. I only know what I lived,” she says.
In November, the cast of “Vanderpump Rules” headlined a panel at BravoCon in Las Vegas and debuted the trailer for the upcoming season. Though Leviss is no longer on the show, the trailer showed signs of lingering tension among the friend group.
While one cast member quite literally draws a line in the sand to designate “Ariana’s side” and “Sandoval’s side,” others are still emotionally conflicted about their loyalties. Lisa Vanderpump, the matriarch figure of the group, seems to take pity on Sandoval in the trailer, saying, “To lose his best friend, his business is up the creek, everything has gone wrong in his life.”
The end of the teaser cuts to an intense moment between Madix and Sandoval. “Ruin my life, my home, and then f------ attempt to kill my f------ dog. My lawyer will be dealing with you,” Madix tells him.
Beyond that one-minute trailer, little is known about the upcoming season. But based on how things left off, “Vanderpump Rules” fans know they’re in for some chaos.
