Ariana Madix Tries to Communicate Telepathically With the Love Islanders

Ariana Madix had been making great reality TV for over a decade thanks to her run on Vanderpump Rules, where she took sketch comedy “very seriously” and bragged, “I’m smarter than you, I’m cooler than you, I’m prettier than you, get the fuck over it, move on with your life.” But until recently, it was hard to imagine her as an Emmy nominee. That changed in the wake of Scandoval as she’s forged a new path for docusoap alums hoping to evolve to the next stage of fame. She came in third on Dancing With the Stars in 2023 and delivered remarkable grosses starring in Chicago on Broadway the next year. Her career has since skyrocketed, and her arrival in Fiji as the host of Love Island USA season six in 2024 helped the show finally break through as a phenomenon in the States. In July, she received her first Emmy nomination for her work as the host of season seven, while this summer’s season eight raked in 19 billion viewership minutes. She’s also returning to Broadway, soon starring in Just in Time playing Connie Francis opposite Tony nominee Jeremy Jordan.

Madix is the perfect Love Island host because she is proof of what everyone competing on the show believes: If you are vulnerable on reality TV, the viewers who connect with you will care as your career grows over time. “So much life has been lived between those two versions of myself,” she says. “I’m able to feel and express joy on Love Island. I don’t think that I was really doing that on Pump Rules.”

You got an Emmy nomination for hosting Love Island USA. How did you process that?
It’s recognition for not just me and what I do on the show but for the show itself. Love Island is such a huge technical-production feat that people don’t realize. It’s validating that our show is being recognized. Personally, it is about the nomination. My name is listed now in this incredible category of nominees, and these are all people I’ve looked up to in my career and in my life for so long. It’s a little bit surreal.

It’s uncommon for dating shows that aren’t Love on the Spectrum to be recognized by the Television Academy. Why do you think they nominated you? 
It’s hard to deny Love Island’s impact at this point, considering the records that it’s breaking in viewership year after year, and the impact that these Islanders, when they leave the Villa, are making on pop culture and fashion.

You’ve been a part of similar successes before — Vanderpump Rules was the first Housewives-adjacent show to get nominated for an Emmy. This year, Summer House is nominated. What do you think about the relationship between the Emmys and Bravo?
It’s wonderful when the definition of what people think is award winning gets broadened and people are able to recognize that it’s not just one type of show that deserves a nomination. Viewers are watching all different kinds of television. They’re connecting with these shows and connecting with the people who are on these shows.

There are a lot of different approaches to hosting in your category — RuPaul is more imperious; Jeff Probst is a cheerleader; Kristen Kish is warm and sisterly. How do you approach the Love Island version of the Ariana Madix persona?
That version of me is not what you would see every day in life. It’s a heightened, sexy, ultraconfident, mischievous side of me. I try to maintain a certain level of who I am at my core and make sure I’m still able to be myself and bring a level of empathy to the Islanders. I know what it’s like to be on the other side of something like this. I try to mix it all together because, while I am kind of playing a character, I am still myself in so many ways.

How does the Pump Rules Ariana differ from the Love Island Ariana?
It’s all parts of me with things I’ve gone through. But at the end of the day, I don’t think someone who knows me really well would say that, by watching Pump Rules, you’re going to get to know me on a deep level. It’s an hour-long show once a week. You’re getting pieces and situations. The two shows differ because they’re so many years apart. So much life has been lived between those two versions of myself. I’m able to feel and express joy on Love Island. I don’t think that I was really doing that on Pump Rules — well, I did when I was making snow angels on the floor of a hotel. But Love Island is a much more joyful side of me.

Part of the appeal of the show is that Islanders don’t know how they’re being perceived in the outside world. How do you approach interacting with them when they don’t fully understand these narratives themselves?
I do not let them know anything. In the moment where Trinity and Bryce reunite, of course I’m smiling based on my feelings and based on their feelings. They’re so happy, so I’m supporting their happiness. But I’m not letting on or giving them any bread crumbs when it comes to what’s happening online. Beyond that, if I’m introducing Casa Amor with the girls, even though I’ve seen footage that may change their minds, I cannot and don’t let them know even an inkling of what that might be.

Can you feel them trying to read into you?
I can sense sometimes that they’re trying to read my facial expressions, trying to get a little something. Sometimes I do try to telepathically send them signals of what I know. But the poker face is working because I don’t think they’ve got it yet.

Was there anyone that was particularly difficult with? I have to imagine it was odd to celebrate Melanie and Sincere, say, making it into the finale.
In moments like that, I have to be as impartial as possible. I remind myself that, while I may disagree with how someone has done something in the Villa, it’s a very difficult situation to be in and that they are trying their best. If they’re happy, I certainly don’t want to make them unhappy. I know everyone’s going to come out of the Villa and, in preparation for the reunion, hopefully watch the show. In time, they’ll know it all. Of course they’re happy to be in the finals, so of course I want to be happy with them at that moment.

Is there anything you can spill about the upcoming reunion?
It’s the perfect conclusion to the season. We got a lot of answers about things that were unknown, and we were able to clear up a lot of things that people were unsure of. There were tears.

You co-hosted again with Andy Cohen. What is that partnership like? 
It’s so much fun. Andy and I have known each other for a very long time now. He’s seen me come so far. I learned so much watching how he navigates not just the on-camera interactions but the ones that we have off-camera with our producers and getting the reunion to flow the way it should. We have a fun dynamic because we can bounce off of each other. If someone says something, or if he asks a question and they’re not really answering it, I can follow up with another way of asking. We can back each other up. We can also laugh with each other about something if someone’s answer is … interesting, let’s say.

How have you grown as a host of the reunions?
I’ve learned so much about taking control of the room, and I don’t just necessarily mean with the Islanders. I mean when it comes to saying, “These are the things I really want to ask. These are things I don’t think I need to ask.” I look at the lists of questions and figure out what we can jump to. My first reunion was also the first big reunion that the show had done in that style. It was a group effort to take it from season six to season eight and have it flow. Each reunion has flowed better and better. That’s a group effort.

You are joining the cast of Just in Time later this year. What are you looking forward to about being in that show?
I’m excited to perform in that theater. I’m a big fan of the Circle in the Square Theatre — the way that the audience is a part of the show is so cool. I’m excited to work with Jeremy Jordan. I’ve started some rehearsals, and I’m continuing to learn and grow in the part. It’s a fun show.

Did you know these songs going into it?
Obviously not to the extent that you know them when performing in New York. But this era of music is one I’m familiar with because my parents are fans of it. My dad would play “Splish Splash” on the piano.