She can do it with a broken heart! Ariana Madix snubbed ex-boyfriend Tom Sandoval in a shoutout to the rest of the Vanderpump Rules cast amid the former couple’s ongoing lawsuit drama.
The Florida-born actress, 39, took to her Instagram Stories on Wednesday, July 17, to celebrate the Bravo show’s Emmy nomination for Outstanding Structured Reality Program. She shared a photo of the cast, but placed a purple and gold “Well Done” ribbon sticker over Tom’s face. Ariana also set the post to Taylor Swift’s breakup anthem “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart,” in which the pop star, 34, sings about hitting her performance marks and putting on a good show despite being hurt by an ex.
“Congratulations to everyone at @evolutionmedia @bravotv and to everyone who makes this show great!” she wrote.
The post came one day after Tom, 41, filed a lawsuit against Ariana, accusing her of accessing explicit videos of Raquel Leviss on his cell phone without his consent.
He claimed that the Chicago star “obtained access” to his phone on March 1, 2023, and reviewed videos of him and Raquel, 29, without his “authorization or permission,” according to court documents obtained by Us Weekly. On that date, Ariana was out with Tom and discovered videos of explicit FaceTime chats that he and the Sonoma, California, native had behind her back.
Tom alleged that Ariana “made copies” of the videos and distributed them to Raquel “and third parties” without his permission.
Ariana’s lawyer, Jordan Susman, told Us Weekly in response to the lawsuit, “It is abhorrent that Tom Sandoval continues to torment Ms. Madix. From engaging in an illicit affair that shattered her home and stability, to months of emotional warfare and now this attempt to further shirk personal responsibility for the effects his actions have had on her and her emotional wellbeing. Tom Sandoval knows full well what sort of privileges he and Ms. Madix shared in regard to their personal communication devices.”
He continued, “If he or his mistress had their way, it would be illegal for someone to discover their spouse or significant other was having an affair. For Mr. Sandoval to go from begging Ms. Madix for forgiveness to blaming her for his wrongdoing speaks for itself. Even months after the New York Times branded Mr. Sandoval ‘the most hated man in America,’ he has clearly learned nothing and believes it necessary to continue torturing Ms. Madix in a vain effort to rehabilitate his image. Ms. Madix is confident that a jury will see through this latest ploy and dismiss his frivolous claims.”
Vanderpump Rules cameras captured the aftermath of Ariana discovering the videos of Tom and Raquel during season 10 in 2023. The Broadway actress and musician, who had been dating since 2014, called it quits, and he briefly dated Raquel until their split in May 2023. The scandal was dubbed Scandoval.
Earlier this year, Raquel sued Tom and Ariana, accusing them of revenge porn and invasion of privacy. She alleged that the former bartender recorded their conversations without her knowledge and claimed that Ariana shared those chats with third parties without Raquel’s consent.
