Leaving their mark on reality TV. Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix found themselves at the center of drama after joining Bravo’s Vanderpump Rules.
Viewers were initially introduced to Sandoval’s love life through his tumultuous relationship with Kristen Doute. Amid their on-and-off relationship, the former couple’s future was called into question when Madix came to work at Lisa Vanderpump‘s restaurant SUR.
Rumors swirled that Sandoval and Madix hooked up while he was still with Doute — which both of the bartenders denied. Following his offscreen split from the former SUR waitress in 2014, Sandoval moved on with Madix later that year.
Doute, for her part, was vocal about her dislike for her ex-boyfriend’s new relationship. During season 3, the Michigan native shocked her fellow cast members when she invited a woman from Miami who claimed she slept with Sandoval to Los Angeles.
Madix later admitted that she didn’t have many regrets about the way she chose to handle the bombshell while cameras were rolling. “I don’t know. I was going to say yes. I should’ve just, like, stayed there and not left,” she exclusively told Us Weekly in October 2021 about fleeing the scene with Sandoval. “But we just went to a bar next door, had a drink and chilled until they were, like, ‘You have to come back here.’”
She continued: “The reason why we left is because we felt like production was pulling this whole thing. We were, like, ‘Oh, so random people just show up now. I do regret, I guess just not fully calling out the whole real story, like on camera and staying there.”
Earlier that year, Sandoval also questioned his decision to let Doute’s mistake rattle him so much. “If I can do anything over again, I just would have never even filmed with [Miami girl]. I just don’t think it’s really fair. Like, so I can, like, make up something about anybody and then end up on our show?” he told Us in August 2021. “I wish I would have just never even engaged in that at all.”
After mending their issues with Doute, Sandoval and Madix settled into their relationship. Although the pair are happy together, the Paradise City actress revealed throughout her time on Vanderpump Rules that she was struggling with her mental health.
Madix previously used her platform on the show to discuss topics, including her bisexuality and depression. During season 8, the Fancy AF Cocktails author revealed to Stassi Schroeder and Lala Kent that she wasn’t in a good place.
“I don’t enjoy most things very much, but you guys don’t know that because we don’t talk one-on-one,” Madix told Schroeder and Kent during an episode in February 2020. “I’m considering driving off the f–king freeway bridge when I’m driving home at night. I don’t talk to you guys about that stuff because it’s not safe. It’s not safe.”
At the time, Sandoval applauded Madix for addressing her issues and allowing others to see how she handles her depression.
“Obviously it’s something that she struggles with on a regular basis,” he shared with Us that same month. “All I could do is try to be supportive, try not to be annoying. Because I’ll try to overcompensate it and it’s annoying. I know it’s annoying, but I don’t know what to do. I want to help. I want to help, but you can only do so much.”
Later that year, Madix gushed about her boyfriend’s support and love for her in a special Instagram tribute. “Took a trip into the vault for this post and ended up with too many gems to fit into the slideshow. 7’s are lucky numbers to many people, but your double 7/7 birthday makes me the luckiest one ☺️ my favorite parts of life with you are the quiet mornings when we get to sleep in, eating too much food together, all the cuddles with our girls, and getting to see the world with you,” she wrote via Instagram in July 2020. “Even if it’s just a walk around the block, i love seeing everything with you. i love you so so much! happiest of birthdays 🥰.”
Scroll down to relive Sandoval and Madix’s offscreen romance:
Credit: Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
‘Vanderpump Rules’ Stars Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix’s Relationship Timeline
Leaving their mark on reality TV. Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix found themselves at the center of drama after joining Bravo’s Vanderpump Rules.
Viewers were initially introduced to Sandoval’s love life through his tumultuous relationship with Kristen Doute. Amid their on-and-off relationship, the former couple’s future was called into question when Madix came to work at Lisa Vanderpump‘s restaurant SUR.
Rumors swirled that Sandoval and Madix hooked up while he was still with Doute — which both of the bartenders denied. Following his offscreen split from the former SUR waitress in 2014, Sandoval moved on with Madix later that year.
Doute, for her part, was vocal about her dislike for her ex-boyfriend’s new relationship. During season 3, the Michigan native shocked her fellow cast members when she invited a woman from Miami who claimed she slept with Sandoval to Los Angeles.
Madix later admitted that she didn’t have many regrets about the way she chose to handle the bombshell while cameras were rolling. “I don’t know. I was going to say yes. I should’ve just, like, stayed there and not left,” she exclusively told Us Weekly in October 2021 about fleeing the scene with Sandoval. “But we just went to a bar next door, had a drink and chilled until they were, like, ‘You have to come back here.'”
She continued: “The reason why we left is because we felt like production was pulling this whole thing. We were, like, ‘Oh, so random people just show up now. I do regret, I guess just not fully calling out the whole real story, like on camera and staying there.”
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Earlier that year, Sandoval also questioned his decision to let Doute’s mistake rattle him so much. “If I can do anything over again, I just would have never even filmed with [Miami girl]. I just don’t think it’s really fair. Like, so I can, like, make up something about anybody and then end up on our show?” he told Us in August 2021. “I wish I would have just never even engaged in that at all.”
After mending their issues with Doute, Sandoval and Madix settled into their relationship. Although the pair are happy together, the Paradise City actress revealed throughout her time on Vanderpump Rules that she was struggling with her mental health.
Madix previously used her platform on the show to discuss topics, including her bisexuality and depression. During season 8, the Fancy AF Cocktails author revealed to Stassi Schroeder and Lala Kent that she wasn’t in a good place.
“I don’t enjoy most things very much, but you guys don’t know that because we don’t talk one-on-one,” Madix told Schroeder and Kent during an episode in February 2020. “I’m considering driving off the f–king freeway bridge when I’m driving home at night. I don’t talk to you guys about that stuff because it’s not safe. It’s not safe.”
At the time, Sandoval applauded Madix for addressing her issues and allowing others to see how she handles her depression.
“Obviously it’s something that she struggles with on a regular basis,” he shared with Us that same month. “All I could do is try to be supportive, try not to be annoying. Because I’ll try to overcompensate it and it’s annoying. I know it’s annoying, but I don’t know what to do. I want to help. I want to help, but you can only do so much.”
Later that year, Madix gushed about her boyfriend’s support and love for her in a special Instagram tribute. “Took a trip into the vault for this post and ended up with too many gems to fit into the slideshow. 7’s are lucky numbers to many people, but your double 7/7 birthday makes me the luckiest one ☺️ my favorite parts of life with you are the quiet mornings when we get to sleep in, eating too much food together, all the cuddles with our girls, and getting to see the world with you,” she wrote via Instagram in July 2020. “Even if it’s just a walk around the block, i love seeing everything with you. i love you so so much! happiest of birthdays 🥰.”
Scroll down to relive Sandoval and Madix’s offscreen romance:
Credit: Picture Perfect/Shutterstock
November 2013
The Florida native joined the season 2 cast of Vanderpump Rules, where her past with Sandoval became a topic of conversation. (The show films during the summer.)
Credit: Mediapunch/Shutterstock
February 2014
During the season 2 reunion, Sandoval and Madix confirmed that they were dating.
Credit: Courtesy of Tom Sandoval/Instagram
June 2016
“Happy Birthday to my homey, best friend, Number1 stunner, peer, ride or die, love of my life, and the cutest damn dumplin!” the TomTom co-owner captioned an Instagram photo with his girlfriend.
Credit: Courtesy of Ariana Madix/Instagram
February 2017
Sandoval and Madix were all smiles during a trip to Coronet Peak.
Credit: Rob Latour/Shutterstock
March 2018
After Madix opened up about her self-esteem and body image issues, her boyfriend praised her ability to be so honest on Vanderpump Rules.
“I just try to be as supportive as I can, the same way she would be with me,” he exclusively told Us. “We try to work things out together and do the best we can. I mean, we both love each other so much, and care so deeply for each other, so neither one of us want to see somebody struggling with anything. I think it was liberating to get that out there because now it’s been something that we’ve attacked.”
Credit: Chris Chew/UPI/Shutterstock
December 2018
During an interview with Us, Sandoval hinted that he and Madix will “probably never” get engaged. The DFH founder, for her part, agreed about not having plans to explore that relationship milestone.
“It’s not on the agenda for us,” Madix told Us at the time. “I feel like I have way too much stuff I’ve got to do, you know? I’ve got to travel the world, I’ve got to be a successful businesswoman, I’ve got to put out a series of cocktail books.”
The pair noted that they were more excited about purchasing a home together. “To me, we’d rather put our money in that investment than, to us, marriage or a wedding and all that, an expensive ring,” Sandoval said.
Credit: Courtesy of Ariana Madix/Instagram
August 2019
“Things that make me go 🥰🥰🥰,” Madix captioned a sweet Instagram pic from the duo’s date night.
Credit: Jordan Strauss/AP/Shutterstock
December 2019
The businessman revealed that he was the first one to say “I love you” during a memorable trip.
“Ariana and I were secretly kind of dating because we didn’t want to tell [people just yet],” he recalled to Us. “We didn’t want to let everybody know that we were, that me and Kristen had broken up because that was, like, a big thing with our show. On January 1, when the rest of the world was reeling from their hangover, Ariana got off work and we took a road trip straight to San Francisco. We created this awesome playlist. It was like, honestly, one of the most magical times in my entire life.”
Sandoval continued, “We stayed at Napa Valley Lodge and had a fireplace. We had a hot air balloon ride, and then we decided like, ‘OK, let’s stop by San Francisco on our way back.’ So we went there, we went to the Palace of Fine Arts and it was just an unbelievable trip.”
Credit: Lisa O’Connor/Shutterstock
February 2020
“Whenever we’re busy, whenever we’re working out, healthy, being proactive, it just tends to be a positive influence on our relationship. We just want to kind of keep those things going on,” Sandoval told Us about the twosome putting in the work on their romance. “We’re very close. We joke around on a regular basis. We have great debates, intelligent debates. We have a lot of respect for each other. It’s a positive thing.”
The bar owner pointed out that he found himself growing closer to Madix after she came out as bisexual. “I think that the more you’re open and honest about who you are, I feel like it just makes you stronger in the end,” Sandoval added. “It’s something I’ve known.”
Credit: Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock
August 2020
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Sandoval revealed how his quarantine with Madix was “reasonably positive” considering the circumstance.
“We’ve been, like, cooking dinner and stuff more and doing like hang sessions and putting puzzles together and Legos and doing some, like, creative stuff,” the Bravo personality explained. “It’s been nice.”
Sandoval continued, “I know it can be rough being locked down with somebody all the time, but it’s been nice. We have our own things going on, but we’ve been doing stuff together.”
Credit: Courtesy of Ariana Madix/Instagram
January 2021
“7 years with you ❤️ you’ve shown me love that i had only dreamed of. i don’t know what adventures life has in store for us but if it’s anything like the last 7 years, i can’t wait to spend every moment with you ❤️ i love you @tomsandoval1,” Madix gushed in an Instagram post.
Credit: Courtesy of Ariana Madix/Instagram
September 2021
Sandoval and Madix only had eyes for each other.
Credit: Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
June 2022
The twosome brought their A-game to the 2022 MTV Movie & TV Awards red carpet, posing side by side.
Credit: Bryan Bedder/Bravo
October 2022
“We’re great. We’re doing really good,” Sandoval exclusively told Us at BravoCon of his relationship with Madix, noting he’s seen headlines about their supposed breakup “for years.”
Madix agreed with her boyfriend, telling Us at the New York event that she also loves to “gossip” about people she watches on TV. “I look at all those blind items [online] and things like that. I’m into it, so I totally get it,” the Fancy AF Cocktails coauthor explained. “If you were to follow all of those things — I mean, we’ve been together for almost nine years — you would think we’ve broken up like times 50 times.”
Credit: Courtesy of Ariana Madix/Instagram
November 2022
The couple were all smiles while attending a concert with their friends.
Credit: Courtesy Ariana Madix/Instagram
January 2023
“2023 forecast is ✨ glittery ✨,” Madix captioned an Instagram selfie of her kissing Sandoval.
Credit: Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
January 2023
In the season 10 trailer for Vanderpump Rules, Scheana Shay revealed to Tom that Katie Maloney was claiming he and Ariana were in an open relationship. In response, the WFH founder took to social media to clear up the speculation.
“We dont have an open relationship. i’m really not that cool. thought that was obvious,” Ariana tweeted.
