It’s not every day that a reality competition series superfan goes on to become the show’s host. But that’s more or less the tale of how Ariana Madix, alum of Vanderpump Rules and Broadway’s Chicago, fell into hosting one of Peacock’s most-watched series, Love Island.
Madix tells the Television Academy just how she came to host the competition show, in which a group of sexy singles pair up (sometimes several times) in search of a love connection.
“I think it was back in Covid times when one of my dearest friends was watching Love Island Australia and was like, ‘You have to watch this show. And there are so many episodes,’” Madix says. “Sometimes when there are so many episodes of a show, that can be too daunting and can turn you away from getting involved, but I had so much time at home. So, I powered through two or three seasons of Love Island Australia. Then I started watching Love Island UK. I loved watching the journeys and the crazy drama, and I just became obsessed. Then I started watching Love Island USA.
“At one point, they asked me to do a couple of guest-host things, because I had talked very publicly about loving the show, and I was very excited about getting to guest-host. And then when the opportunity came around to host, of course I was very, very excited. I was so blessed and lucky to be able to host right at this time when I think all of the planets aligned, and we had the most incredible cast last season. I just couldn't be more thrilled. I’m obsessed.”
Over the years, Madix has approached television from nearly every angle. In addition to her Love Island hosting duties, 11 seasons of sharing her personal life on Vanderpump Rules and competing on the 32nd season of Dancing with the Stars, in February she played herself in a guest spot on the ABC series Will Trent. Madix says she’s enjoying the variety of work on television screens.
Photo credit: Peacock
“I really like being involved in many different ways,” she says. “I think back to when I was in high school; I had so many different sports and extracurricular activities and clubs and the school play and this and that. I was always involved in so many different things. I think that’s translated to adulthood and my career. I like to have a variety of things that, throughout the day, I'm turning my focus to, whether that's having a meeting to talk about potential development, or maybe I want to produce something, or I want to host, or I want to act. I do really like doing a lot of different things. I find it very fulfilling to be able to put on many different hats.”
Below, we asked Ariana Madix to share some of the TV projects over the years that have helped define her.
My first favorite show as a kid: I Love Lucy
I was very much a Sesame Street kid, but I was also very much a Nick at Nite kid. I loved watching it with my family, especially with my mom, because there were shows on Nick at Nite that she watched as a kid. Watching I Love Lucy, I felt so connected to my mom and even my grandma. When I think about my childhood and the first show I really fell in love with, it's that. And even recently, as of a couple years ago, I started finding old episodes of it to put on, and it was so comforting for me.
Photo credit: The WB/20th Century Television
The show that was formative for me as a teen: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
It was the first show me and my mom could watch together that wasn't just my mom watching a kids show. It felt like my first real foray into a more grown-up show. And I wanted to be her. I wanted to dress like her. I thought she was just everything, and, I don't know, it was also scary. She was so badass.
I met Sarah Michelle Gellar at [Evan Ross Katz’s Chaos Dinner 3.0], but I was so nervous that I didn't really talk to her like I wanted to. But there was a group photo, and we're both in it, and I’m very excited about that. And I got to do Dancing with the Stars with Alyson Hannigan, so that was also very exciting for me.
The show I consider to be ahead of its time: Hey Arnold!
I immediately thought back to Hey Arnold! For a children's cartoon, it was tackling more adult issues than any other animated show on TV at the time, and it was so beautifully made. And the soundtrack was largely jazz music.
The show that is must-watch weekly viewing for me: The Pitt
I’ve never been into medical dramas, but Max kept suggesting it to me, and I thought, “I'll give it a try, because Noah Wyle is in it.” And I love that it's this full-circle moment of him coming back to medical drama. So, I put it on and became obsessed. Every week, I'm downloading it onto my tablet. I have a garage treadmill situation right now, so I'm going in the garage and just watching The Pitt and running on the treadmill.
The show that was influential on my personal style: Game of Thrones
I was racking my brain trying to think of what I would answer for this. It's hard, because I think of so many different aspects of personal style. There were shows when I was younger, of course — Buffy, for example: She's wearing chokers, she's wearing bootcut leather pants, and I wanted that so bad.
Photo credit: HBO
But in more recent years, I honestly think Game of Thrones is a show that had me looking up how to braid my hair. I tried to figure out how they were achieving these super-intricate braided hairstyles. I love a braid, as many people know. And it was a try and fail. I don't think I ever figured it out, but I wanted so badly that we could all just start walking around dressing like characters from Game of Thrones.
The show I love that may be surprising to people: Sweet Home
I'm obsessed with a show called Sweet Home, which is an apocalyptic monster K-drama on Netflix — which is great for K-dramas. They have a lot of them on there that you can binge-watch. It's currently my favorite that I've seen, and I recently finished it and sobbed. It was such a beautiful story. Basically, it's similar to, say, a zombie show, but it's not zombies, it's monsters. People turn into monsters based on their innermost desires and inner demons. Some monsters are fine, and they won't hurt you. And some might be very dangerous, might kill people, stuff like that. Listen, I won't spoil it, but it's really great, and I cried.
The show I’m embarrassed to say I’ve never seen: Grey’s Anatomy, The Kardashians
It's hard to say that I'm embarrassed about not seeing it, but it's been something that's come up over the years since it's been on TV for 1,000 years: I've never seen an episode of Grey's Anatomy. Also, I'm not embarrassed, but I've never seen an episode of any Kardashians anything. But I feel like it's fine. And it does come up when someone might reference something. People will talk about certain things, and I just have to nod along. I understand what they're talking about, but I have no idea.
Love Island USA streams every night (save for Wednesdays) on Peacock.
