Ariana Madix on if She’s Returning to Vanderpump Rules, Criticism

Credit: Kim Nunneley/Peacock

Ariana Madix opened up about the upcoming 12th season of Vanderpump Rules during an interview with Tony Award winner Kristin Chenoweth, who applauded her for “[bringing] business to Broadway.”

As Ariana, 39, continues to star in her second stint as Roxie Hart in Chicago, she praised Katie Maloney, 37, for holding down the fort at their sandwich shop, Something About Her, addressed social media criticism, and revealed her mentor while also talking Love Island USA and Broadway.

“I don’t think there’s any word yet on any of it,” Ariana said when asked if she was returning to Vanderpump Rules for season 12 during the August 20 sitdown for Interview magazine.

For now, Ariana is focused on performing in New York City while Katie remains in Los Angeles, ensuring everything is running smoothly at their restaurant.

“It’s a lot [of work]. I’m really lucky and grateful that Katie [Maloney], my business partner, is incredible. She’s holding down the fort, killing it every day in L.A. while I’m here in New York. When we get to be in the shop together, it’s always the best,” Ariana stated. “I love her so much. We have the best team. We have the best employees. It’s just a really lovely place to get to spend the day and meet everyone coming in.”

When Kristin wanted to know what sandwich she’d recommend, Ariana revealed, “I love ‘The Cameron,’ which is sort of our version of an Italian. It’s delicious. But lately I’ve been in a ‘Kate’ mood, which is our version of a Caprese.”

Although Ariana has dealt with her fair share of social media criticism over the years, she said she doesn’t check it as much as she used to.

“When there’s maybe one negative comment, that somehow outweighs the rest. I saw something recently on TikTok where someone said, ‘What’s more important, more positive thinking or less negative thinking?’ The answer is less negative thinking, because you could have more positive thinking all the livelong day, but if you still have that little bit of negative thinking, it takes over everything else,” she noted. “[And] it’s never anything new or unique or true, and it’s always something that really just reflects how that person is feeling about themselves.”

Following her hosting debut on Love Island USA season six, Ariana said she’d been a longtime fan of the series.

“I watched the other hosts get to do these beautiful slo-mo entrances into the villa before they tell people that they’re going home. In my head I was like, ‘Wow, that would be so cool.’ So you have your little fantasies, and then it was something that I actually got to do, so it was really, really fun, like playing dress-up,” she shared.

As she continues to thrive post-“Scandoval,” Ariana said she’s following in the lead of her mother, who’s her mentor. Ariana described her as “fiercely independent.”

“She texts me every day that there’s a show and she’ll send me a red rose emoji just to let me know she’s thinking of me. She’s the person who was front row center at every one of my school plays and has come to see me in Chicago,” she revealed. “She’s someone that I have always looked up to because she’s always been so fiercely independent.”

Looking back at her childhood, Ariana said she “always wanted to do theater.”

“I did theater as a kid in junior high, elementary school, high school … I was a theater major in college, and I moved to New York to try to do theater, but I didn’t know anybody, I had no representation, and I’m also short,” she explained.

As she attempted to survive in the city, Ariana learned how to bartend and moved to Los Angeles in hopes of scoring some “TV credits” and eventually returning to the Big Apple. So, when she got the call to appear in Chicago last year, she “cried” and “freaked out.”

“I just thought, ‘I have to give this my all because this is the moment where I can show them that I can do this,’” she shared.

While Ariana was coming in as a reality star, she confirmed the cast was welcoming.

“I was really scared too because I didn’t know what they were thinking of me, coming into a long-running show. I also know that, in Chicago, a lot of people have come in, celebrities have come in, and I wasn’t sure if they were excited about that or if they were hesitant,” she reasoned. “But they were so welcoming and we just have the best time backstage. It’s so fun.”

“I love live theater. It’s just the best. I would love to just play more in that space, and hopefully the universe will allow me to,” she added.