Jax Taylor, Tom Schwartz, Katie Maloney and Tom Sandoval Scott Kirkland/Shutterstock; Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock; Stephanie Augello/Shutterstock; Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock
Placing blame. Vanderpump Rules alum Jax Taylor thinks his former costars Tom Schwartz and Katie Maloney would still be married if it weren’t for Tom Sandoval.
Taylor, 43, shared the opinion during episode 1 of his and wife Brittany Cartwright’s three-episode stint on Peacock’s Watch With feature, which premiered on Thursday, April 13. The couple will be providing commentary on new episodes of Pump Rules on the streaming platform until April 27.
“I think he had a lot to do with why they got divorced,” Taylor told Cartwright, 34, of Sandoval’s influence on Schwartz, 40, and Maloney, 36. “I would like to think they would still be together if it weren’t for Sandoval.”
The reality TV personality continued: “As much as Katie drives me nuts, I see her point.”
Cartwright agreed, saying, “Oh, yeah.”
Schwartz and Maloney tied the knot in 2016 after five years of dating. The twosome later revealed that the union wasn’t legal due to lost paperwork and held a second wedding ceremony in 2019. After sharing all the ups and downs of their relationship on Pump Rules, the duo called it quits in March 2022.
“I never thought I would have to make an announcement like this,” Maloney wrote via Instagram at the time. “After 12 years on an adventure through our life together, Tom and I are ending our marriage.” The exes finalized their split in October 2022.
Sandoval and Schwartz, for their part, have had a strong bromance for over a decade, opening two eateries together: TomTom and Schwartz & Sandy’s. Sandoval and Maloney, however, have often butted heads, forcing Schwartz to choose between his best friend and his wife.
“I’m never the first one to pick a fight,” Sandoval claimed of his dynamic with Maloney during a September 2021 appearance on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen. “Just trust me.”
Schwartz’s refusal to take Maloney’s side was a longtime source of conflict in their relationship.
“I felt like he was choosing everyone else in the room and in his life before me. I was like, ‘I don’t know that I’m in love anymore,’” Maloney explained during a June 2022 appearance on the “Relationsh*t with Kamie Crawford” podcast, recalling the events that prompted her to end her marriage.
Schwartz, for his part, claimed earlier this month during a WWHL appearance that his ex-wife “demanded unconditional loyalty” to an unreasonable extent early in their relationship.
“She abused [the request to defend her] a little bit. She was always getting in tiffs and she’s like, ‘You’re with me or against me,’” he said. “She’s way better now. Katie, I love you, but in the beginning, she was kind of a monster. … She has had a falling out with every single person in her life multiple times. And I just didn’t like getting dragged into all that and I guess I became a little numb when she actually did need me. It’s like the boy who cried wolf.”
Taylor’s comments about Sandoval affecting his costars’ marriage come one month after news broke of the restaurateur’s affair with Raquel Leviss. On March 3, Us Weekly confirmed that Sandoval and his girlfriend of nine years, Ariana Madix, had called it quits amid the infidelity scandal.
Taylor has since spoken out against Sandoval’s conduct with Leviss, 28, on numerous occasions. After the Tom Sandoval & the Most Extras lead singer shared his side of the story during a Tuesday, April 11, appearance on the “Howie Mandel Does Stuff” podcast, Taylor slammed the musician for making excuses.
“There’s no justifying cheating. Take it from someone who’s been down this road,” the “When Reality Hits With Jax and Brittany” podcaster — who has had multiple infidelity scandals of his own — said during a Tuesday appearance on Access Hollywood’s Housewives Nightcap. “You own up to what you’ve done. Be a man.”
He continued: “He hasn’t owned up to anything, he’s justifying everything. … I mean, that’s not a man in my opinion. If you are man enough to do what you’ve done, you should be man enough to own up to what you’ve done and at least have some empathy and apologize to Ariana.”
The model added that Madix, 37, was better off without her former beau.
Sign up for Us Weekly’s free, daily newsletter and never miss breaking news or exclusive stories about your favorite celebrities, TV shows and more!
“She’s a completely different person,” Taylor said. “She seems like she’s glowing. She seems like she’s a lot happier.”
