Ariana Madix praised a TikTok influencer who suggested her ex-boyfriend Tom Sandoval was either a “narcissist” or “toxic.” Meanwhile, a source declared that Tom was not fired after his controversial interview with Howie Mandel.
In the interview, Tom seemed to make excuses for his reported affair with Raquel Leviss. According to certain reports, however, the podcast taping was not authorized by Bravo, who hoped to keep his full story hidden until the upcoming Vanderpump Rules reunion.
Amid the interview, Ariana praised influencer Lee Hammock after he suggested Tom was either a “narcissist” or at the very least a “very toxic person.”
Lee also called out the fact that “nowhere” in Tom’s initial apology did he mention Ariana’s name, which suggests Tom’s “not sorry for what he did.”
In the comments, via @commentsbybravo on Instagram, Ariana revealed she used to “show [Tom]” the influencer’s videos, and she gushed, “Love your work!”
As of now, Ariana has not given a full-length interview about the scandal (other than the yet-to-be-aired reunion).
Tom, on the other hand, just unleashed his full version of the story on Howie’s podcast. After its release, reports indicated that Bravo was unhappy and could possibly fire Tom.
Insiders speaking to Radar, however, are saying Tom won’t be fired over the interview. “There has been no conversation of him being fired” for what they’ve described as an “unauthorized” interview.
A spokesperson for the network said, “Sandoval did give the network a heads up that he was going on Howie’s podcast.” They also denied a report that Bravo was “blindsided.”
“The rest of the cast has been doing plenty of non-approved interviews,” said an insider, and they indicated that if Tom was axed over the Howie interview, “that would mean the whole cast would [also] be fired.”
Vanderpump Rules season 10 airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on Bravo.