This post was originally published on this site
Ariana Madix has had quite the 2023.
The Bravolebrity was rocked earlier this year when she learned her longtime partner, Tom Sandoval, had an affair with her friend and “Vanderpump Rules” costar Raquel Leviss.
The infidelity made headlines and thus the hashtag “Scandoval” was formed.
Now she’s on her way to possibly winning the famous mirrorball trophy on “Dancing with the Stars” alongside partner Pasha Pashkov.
While betrayal pushed her further into the spotlight, it gained her much support with fans rooting for her.
“I’m really grateful for it because I think when things get tough, and I’m trying to dig deep and find something in myself, sometimes I can get that from other people. It’s really, it’s really lovely,” she explained to KTLA 5’s Sam Rubin.
Madix acknowledged that the scandal weirdly opened doors for her.
“It has, which is really weird and kind of a crazy thing that’s happened,” she explained. “But I am really grateful for that. Because I think that I’m able to show who I am and different sides of myself that people haven’t seen before.”
While Madix and Pashkov are semifinalists, earlier this week they were close to getting the boot.
“I thought for sure ‘I’m going home’ because I’m an elder millennial. I think a lot of the people who are voting for me were born before the internet existed, right? Whereas it’s me and Xochitl (Gomez) in the pretend bottom and she’s a teenager so she has power of teenagers on the internet. I just thought, ‘Oh, that’s it.’”
To prepare for the finale, it’ll be a tight schedule of “no sleep” and “24/7 rehearsals” joked Pashkov.
“We’re pulling literally everything we’ve got and throwing it out onto the floor,” he explained.
The professional dancer revealed that fans will see a new side of Madix in the finale.
The Season 32 three-hour finale of “Dancing with the Stars” airs on Dec. 5 at 8 p.m. on ABC and Disney+.
Madix is also hosting a live show at The Wiltern on Dec. 13 at 8 p.m. Tickets are available here.
Suggest a Correction
