Ariana Madix made a stunning debut on “Love Island USA.”
On June 11, 2024, the “Vanderpump Rules” star commanded the villa in a series of promos for the Peacock dating show—and most of her Bravo co-stars showed her support.
Madix has replaced Sarah Hyland as the host of the summer-long reality show. In a March Instagram post, she told fans, “Talk about a bombshell! This summer, I’m trading rhinestone buckles for bikinis. I’m hosting the next season of ‘Love Island USA’ streaming this summer on Peacock. I can’t wait to stir up some trouble in paradise!”
The ‘Vanderpump Rules’ Cast Reacted to Ariana Madix’s ‘Love Island’ Intro
Just before the “Love Island” premiere dropped on Peacock, Madix posted a photo and a video to show off her glamorous intro look. The 38-year-old reality star wore a drapey, gold cut-out gown and matching sky-high gold heels as she stepped out of a limo and said, “This is the Love Island I came for.”
According to Femestella, Madix’s Di Pesta Gold Metallic Beaded Gown retails for $4,700.
Madix captioned the video with, “To follow in the slo-mo footsteps of such iconic women to host my favorite show is beyond an honor. thank you for welcoming me to the love island family!”
Fans reacted to Madix’s ultra glam look, with some calling it another “revenge dress” more than a year after her ex Tom Sandoval’s headline-making cheating scandal with her former friend, Rachel Leviss.
Many of Madix’s “Vanderpump Rules” co-stars also reacted to the look.
“IM NOT WELL!!!😍🔥😍🔥,” wrote Katie Maloney.
“A Golden Goddess! 💫,” wrote Scheana Shay.
“I’m screaming,” added Ally Lewber.
“HERE WE GOOOOO!! 🤩🤩🤩🤩 @loveisland @peacock 👏,” added James Kennedy.
“i wanna be on you. i mean, hi gorgeous 💛💫✨,” added Kristen Dourte.
“Okayyyyyyyyyyyy 🏆,” commented Stassi Schroeder.
“🔥🔥 Gorgeous!” wrote Brittany Cartwright.
Lala Kent Compared Ariana Madix to ‘Beyonce’ But It Wasn’t a Compliment
Notably missing from the comment section was Lala Kent. On the “Vanderpump Rules” season 11 finale, Kent expressed her frustration over how Madix had seemingly changed following Scandoval. The former SUR bartender received brand partnerships and logged stints on “Dancing with the Stars” and Broadway in the aftermath of her ex’s cheating scandal.
“When this happened to her the world rallied around her, she now thinks she’s Beyonce,” Kent said of Madix. “I have never in my life experienced someone who gets cheated on and suddenly she becomes God!”
Kent elaborated during a June 2024 appearance on the ‘Two Ts in a Pod” podcast. She clarified that she was supportive of Madix’ post-scandal opportunities.
“I want to be around women who work hard and have things that are really cool,” she said. “I have constantly tried to be very supportive. Not tried, I wanted to be supportive. … And even though it was horrible, I was not mad at the opportunity she was getting outside of the show.”
“What I started getting upset about is now we’re bringing a little bit of diva-ness to my place of work that I’ve been doing for eight years,” Kent continued. “And I have a hard time when people think that they are bigger than the show.”
In response to Kent’s comments, fans went back to Madix’s “Love Island USA” opening night look.
“It’s giving ‘thinks she’s Beyonce’ in the best [expletive] way🔥,” wrote one Instagram user.
Her natural charm goes a long way
As much as I love this show (almost as much as Ariana does), I’ll admit there are parts that can be a bit awkward. But through her obvious love of the show and her natural charisma, Ariana never felt stilted. From questioning the contestants to the raunchy icebreaker game to the first coupling up, the host’s bubbly energy was infectious. She was born for this job!
The opening lip-sync dance sequence, for instance, could have been extremely cringe-worthy. But the Dancing with the Stars finalist brought out some of those skills in the opening and appeared to be having a great time. Her smile throughout also helped. Plus, I really bought that she was amazed to see those random fireworks that appeared early in night one!
Ariana’s a girl’s girl
In press leading up to the LI USA Season 6 premiere, Ariana said she wanted to be supportive of the contestants. This was evident in her hosting. When she first met the girls, Ariana repeatedly emphasized that she had their backs. Joining in the champagne toast, she instantly built a camaraderie with the ladies. She also kept mentioning how excited she was to get to know them better. Later in the episode, she also made sure to acknowledge how difficult the bombshell’s decision to steal a boy was. And she’s already warned the guy contestants to be on their best behavior.
Love Island can be a bumpy ride for contestants. In the first episode alone, we saw contestants get emotionally attached to their partners in less than 24 hours. Naturally, there were some tears shed already. In such an emotionally stressful environment, it makes a big difference for contestants when a host has their back. As Vanderpump Rules viewers know, Ariana is a supportive pal, and the biggest cheerleader for her friends.
Ariana will keep the villa (and the audience) on their toes
Another responsibility of the host is to ramp up the tension. At the very end of the Season 6 premiere, Ariana did so perfectly. With the bombshell steal leaving a girl single, Ariana solemnly stated, “Being single on Love Island is never a good thing.” It wouldn’t be the first time this show sent someone home almost immediately, so as a viewer, I prepared for the worst. It was a genuine and welcome surprise for Ariana to joyfully announce, “Unless of course, someone has arranged for two smoking hot new boys to arrive late to the party!”
Introducing three bombshells in the very first episode is a twist I don’t think I’ve ever seen on the show before. Ariana set it up perfectly so that contestants- and the audience- would gasp in delight. Surely, she’ll keep everyone on their toes all season long.
