- Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss both star in the hit reality TV show, Vanderpump Rules.
- The duo appeared to have split as of May 17, 2023, per a report from Page Six.
- Tom was notably in a committed long-term relationship with their co-star Ariana Madix amid his affair with Raquel.
- The official Vanderpump Rules Season 10 reunion episode will kick off on May 24, 2023.
Season 10 of Vanderpump Rules has arguably been the most dramatic season with Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss‘ affair at the forefront of it all. Although the former lovebirds have reportedly split as of May 17, 2023, per a Page Six insider, Tom’s ex, Ariana Madix, is not fully convinced. Now, the full “Scandoval” cheating drama will unfold in part one of the reunion episode set to air on May 24, 2023. Ahead of the explosive episode, here is a closer chronological look at Tom and Raquel’s affair over the last nine months.
August 2022
The secret romance commenced nearly one year ago after Raquel, 28, attended a girls trip with Katie Maloney, Lala Kent and Kristina Kelly around Aug. 4 or Aug. 5, per US Weekly. After the brunette beauty left the girls trip early, Raquel ended up attending a guys night at the Mondrian hotel in Los Angeles that weekend. During an Apr. 2023 interview on the Howie Mandel Does Stuff podcast, Tom detailed what exactly went down that night. “We literally talked ’til the sun came up the first night with my friend Brett,” the 39-year-old claimed.
Soon after that, their first hookup occurred after they both hit up a See You Next Tuesday event at Lisa Vanderpump‘s SUR. Tom and Raquel allegedly got “locked out” of the house he then shared with Ariana. “We just kissed. It was magnetic. We were talking, moving closer, and as we were talking, as time went on, we would just start talking closer and closer, and then all of a sudden, we’re kissing,” he claimed during the interview. “That’s what started something. … And then we backed off, but then … we have a fire pit and a thing. Yeah. And it was kind of … yeah.”
Things continued at Scheana Shay‘s wedding to Brock Davies that month. One day prior to the official ceremony, Tom Schwartz and Raquel shared a secret kiss. Despite Schwartz and Raquel locking lips, he was not interested in pursuing it further. At that point, Schwartz said Sandoval and Raquel began an “emotional affair.” At the same wedding, Sandoval and Raquel reportedly also shared a secret lip lock.
Fall 2022
By the fall months of 2022, Sandoval and Raquel were still seeing each other. “I was seeing Raquel as often as I could. I know that sounds horrible,” he told Howie Mandel during the Apr. 2023 interview on his podcast. “And FaceTiming her all the time. And Ariana didn’t even notice because that’s just how separate our lives were. I had to actually tell her, ‘How have you not noticed how distant I’ve been lately?'” Around the same time, Sandoval had started therapy amid his relationship troubles with Ariana.
December 2022
By the end of the year, Sandoval and Raquel appeared to have taken their secret romance to the next level. On Apr. 11, 2023, TMZ published photos allegedly taken on Dec. 29, 2022, of the two in Sandoval’s hometown. At the time, Raquel and Sandoval posed in front of the Apotheosis of Saint Louis statue just months ahead of their affair becoming public.
January 2023
Sandoval and Raquel opted to kick off the New Year in Big Bear, California, with Schwartz and his rumored girlfriend, Jo Wenberg. While chatting with Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live in Apr. 2023, Schwartz revealed when he officially knew that Raquel and Ariana’s ex were more romantically involved. “Just for the record, that trip was mine and Tom’s trip. I told Jo to come up later and he smuggled Raquel in. What was I to do at that point?” he explained to the Bravo executive at the time. “I knew that they were in love. … At that point, also, I was under the impression that he was more or less broken up with Ariana, and he was in love with Raquel.”
February 2023
During the same interview with Howie, Sandoval alleged that he officially split with Ariana on Valentine’s Day. “Obviously, she was very upset. She freaking punched me and all this s***,” he said in Apr. 2023. “A couple days later, I sit down and talk with her again, and she’s like, ‘I’m not letting you leave me. You’re gonna have to force me out of this relationship.’ I was like, ‘Ariana, I don’t think I could be faithful in a relationship with you right now.’ I hadn’t told her about Raquel yet. She’s like, ‘If you break up with me, you will effectively be ending my life.'”
March 2023
Sandoval and Raquel’s affair quickly became the headline heard ’round the world on Mar. 3, 2023. After Ariana found a video of her then-beau and Raquel together, their breakup went viral. At the time, TMZ was one of the first outlets to report the affair. “We didn’t tell anybody, but she knew,” he said on Howie’s podcast one month later. “She was trying to, like convince me not to be broken up … but that was not the case. She asked me that day as we were leaving about, like — because we had talked about fertilizing [her] eggs, which I never did. She was like, ‘So, what do you think about doing a sperm check to fertilize my eggs?’ And I’m like, ‘What? We’re broken up.’ … I was like, ‘We’ll talk about this later, I gotta go do my show.’”
Later that month, on Mar. 23, the cast got together to film the official reunion episodes. While at the reunion, Raquel and Tom were spotted having a deep conversation away from the cameras. On Mar. 8, Raquel had issued an official statement of regret via Entertainment Tonight. In the note, she apologized to Ariana. “There is no excuse, I am not a victim and I must own my actions and I deeply regret hurting Ariana,” she penned.
April – May 2023
#PumpRules star Ariana Madix reacts to the Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss breakup rumors. #WWHL pic.twitter.com/mnh55UKnvL
— WWHL (@BravoWWHL) May 18, 2023
By April 2023, Sandoval had denied that he and Raquel were “friends with benefits” during Howie’s interview. “We’re really good friends. We’re not putting any label on it,” he claimed. By Apr. 14, Raquel’s rep confirmed to PEOPLE that she was seeking treatment for her mental health amid the drama. “Raquel and her family decided before the relationship was discovered that she would enter a voluntary facility for mental health counseling,” the statement read at the time. “She was scheduled to go in pre-reunion but decided she wanted to finish her filming commitment. Bravo and production were aware and in support of her journey towards better mental health.”
One month later, on May 17, a source told Page Six that Raquel and Sandoval had officially ended their romance. “Raquel dipped out. Sandoval is not the one for her,” the source claimed at the time. That same day, Ariana appeared on WWHL with Andy Cohen and said that she did not believe they were broken up. “I don’t buy that at all,” she told Andy of her ex and Raquel’s alleged split. “She was sending letters to my house like 4 days ago, so…” Although she clarified that she did not open the alleged letters she added, “it was addressed to him and it was her handwriting.” When asked if she could forgive them in the future, Ariana declared, “That’s not happening.” Part one of the Season 10 reunion will premiere on May 24, 2023.