Alix Earle on DWTS, Hot Mess Podcast Future and Acting Plans

Alix Earle has earned the title of being the “It Girl” on social media — but she’s ready for much more.

Earle made her primetime TV debut this season on Dancing With the Stars‘ 34th season. Over the past six weeks, she’s hit the ballroom floor with partner Val Chmerkovskiy performing everything from the cha-cha and jive to the quickstep, Viennese waltz, contemporary and jazz. The show’s packed schedule, she says, has been transformative: “I’ve learned more about myself in the past month and a half of this experience than in the past two years,” Earle tells The Hollywood Reporter. “It’s one of the most amazing things I’ll be able to walk away with.”

The influencer first rose to fame in 2022 by posting “Get Ready With Me” videos on TikTok — clips of her doing her makeup while chatting candidly about her life. At the time, Earle was still a student at the University of Miami, and much of her content reflected typical college experiences — parties, friends and campus life — which helped her feel relatable to her followers. However, she’s also used her platform to open up about her insecurities, with videos documenting her acne journey going viral.

Since graduating in May 2023, Earle’s fanbase has grown alongside her. In addition to maintaining a massive social media following, the 24-year-old is expanding her brand through a range of ventures — from hosting the Hot Mess podcast, where she shares stories and advice, to investing in the margarita company SipMargs and prebiotic soda brand Poppi. She also collaborated with Frame denim on a collection that sold out instantly, which fans dubbed the “Alix Earle effect.”

Below, Earle reflects on her Dancing With the Stars journey and teases what’s next to THR — from the future of Hot Mess to her hopes for a potential Earle family reality series and dream of one day acting in (you guessed it) horror films.

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What’s your pre-game ritual or anything in particular that gets you in the right headspace to perform every Tuesday night? 

I have a serious self-talk and look in the mirror before going on the stage. (Laughs.) I usually will stare myself down and give myself the mental hype talk of a century and try to remind myself why I’m supposed to be here and that it’s not a big deal. I always try to remind myself we’re just on this floating rock and it doesn’t matter, and it’s a minute of my life and that is how I get myself ready for the stage.

During dedication week, you included your younger sister Izabel. What made that so emotional for you and what was it like to share such a memorable experience with her?

I was tapping into a younger version of myself and maybe feelings that I had suppressed for a while. I think bringing back up those old emotions mixed with good feelings, and feelings of gratitude and happiness that my family has come such a long way to get to where we are now and how we’re all so close… I was feeling a lot of things. Moments before the dance started I was crying, so I started with blurry eyes and blurry vision, but it was so special to get to share that with my younger sister.

Your scores have been steadily rising each week — what do you think has contributed most to your progress?

I am obsessive about critiques, so I actually love when the judges are able to give some feedback. It’s something I take into every step and into account every day in rehearsals. I’m very curious in rehearsals. I will often ask Val, “How can I make this better?” Even if I don’t get it right away, I will videotape myself and then go home and dance in my bathroom (laughs) and watch myself on video. You’re able to catch things you don’t feel when you’re dancing. Then I try my best to apply those corrections. It’s also been a lot of studying the styles of dances. I will go home and watch amazing contemporary dances that have been on Dancing With the Stars before and try to understand why they’ve been so good.

How did you and Val build your trust and chemistry so quickly on the dance floor?

In the beginning, we were very focused on the training. I wanted to learn and get down the technique as much as possible. Through that, we found a lot of fun banter and hit it off right away. We have pretty similar personalities. We’re both pretty sarcastic, but at the same time, we’re both here to dance and work and learn. It’s a fine balance of both of those things. But over the past few weeks, we took a moment to realize how much work we’ve put in and the progress we’ve seen in my skills, and we’ve started to enjoy and celebrate that a more and really have fun with it. He is the best friend to me in this whole process; we’ve gotten super close. I’m very happy to have him on my side, especially for something like dedication night. I don’t think if we had gotten as close as we had that I would’ve been able to open up fully and share that story, and be more vulnerable and cry in front of my partner.

For the upcoming Halloween-themed show, what can you tease about your costume?

It’s definitely going to be creepy. I love Halloween. I am someone who is willing to go 110 percent and try anything, but I really want to creep people out with this dance. I want to make their skin crawl a little bit.

It was revealed over the summer that there’s an Earle family reality show in early development. Has that moved forward, are there any updates you can share?

It’s something we’re talking about a lot as a family. There’s a lot of fun banter and behind the scenes I people haven’t seen yet. So we will see what’s to come. There’s nothing 100 percent locked in, but even exploring the opportunity to potentially do something with my family is so fun and surreal. I love that I get to share experiences with my family. I think they’re such amazing, fun characters that if we ever did something, it would be amazing.

Through your content online, you’ve been vulnerable about some challenges you’ve faced. Has there been a memorable story from a fan that you’ve received?

After a recent Dancing With the Stars show, I got a book from one of my fans that she wrote that is about overcoming certain challenges in life. She has a section on talking about acne and how that was a huge insecurity for her, and recognizing me as an influencer who had opened up about this online was really helpful to her. That brought me to tears. The power in sharing those struggles online, although they might not be the most flattering or comfortable at times, really goes a long way. That was the coolest experience I’ve had with a fan.

Leading into the Hot Mess podcast, that outlet has been popular among your fanbase, and lately it’s been conducted in a vlog style-format. What can you share about the podcast’s future and what it will look like?

I’m just planning to keep leveling things up. I have many ideas. I’ve really loved the video-forward content. That’s something that I enjoy, and that my audience enjoys, and where I strive and feel the most comfortable. I definitely want to work on incorporating different segments and shows within this one show. Without saying too much, that is something I’m brainstorming — how we can make this even bigger.

You’ve had some guests on your podcast before — do you want to lean into more interviews, or keep it focused on sharing stories from your life?

I found that interviewing people wasn’t really what I’m interested in doing, and not something I’m very passionate about. But I love connecting with other people and the fun comradery you can have with someone. If there’s a way for me to build something, rather than just another sit down interview that we’ve seen 100 times before, I’m interested in that.

What are some other longterm goals you have for yourself? Is there anything specific in entertainment you want to achieve next?

I would love to try acting — that’s a very ambitious goal for myself, but one day, if there was a role fitting for me, I would love to explore that. In a business sense, building something of my own is something I’m super passionate about. I love working on the marketing and creative [side] of other brands and helping them succeed. And being able to do that for a brand of my own would be so amazing — definitely my biggest goal.

Is there an acting genre you would love to tackle?

I would love to be in a horror film. I have always dreamed since I was little of being a creepy haunted girl in a movie. I had written a little mini movie when I was younger. I was obsessed with anything horror.

Has anybody in that space reached out to you or have you done any auditions?

I have gotten offers to do self-tapes, and I took acting lessons actually earlier in the year. Dince Dancing With the Stars, there has been some reach out. It’s a space I really respect, so I would want to take my time and due diligence on making sure I could even do something to a level where I should be cast. If I was able to encapsulate a character correctly and was the right fit for that role, then 100 percent. I would want to make sure I would be a good fit for something and wasn’t just doing it to do it.

You’ve been featured on our list of the 50 most influential content creators in the world a few times. As the digital landscape continues to evolve, how do you see your role — and future — shaping within it?

It’s such a pinch-me moment to be recognized in that way because I tried for so many years to make any sort of headway in this space, even on a small level to surpass what I thought I could do in my wildest dreams. It’s taking it day by day and continuing to share my life and connect with my audience. They are at the forefront of everything I do and all the decisions I make. That’s really important in longevity in this space — not just getting opportunities and changing who you are and your content. Of course people evolve and change to some degree, but I think abandoning that connection and the closeness you have with your audience who got you here in the first place is really important.

It’s really amazing to see creators recognized for this new age of where people are looking to get their influence or inspiration from or their entertainment. It is a new change, and we’re still evolving in a lot of ways with brands and the way they’re marketing, and shows and having creators involved in them. Even Dancing With the Stars, to get the opportunity to be on there as a creator is not a traditional star is who a lot of our age is resonating with and watching now.

What’s it been like to be an investor in several different companies at such a young age?

At times, I feel like I’m leading the way because there isn’t really a playbook of too many influencers who have done this before, on this level. A lot of the time, I’m just paving my own path and trying to figure out what works best and what I’m passionate about. Finding brands that don’t have the exposure, like SipMargs, for example, and investing in the brand and taking a risk to really help push the product and figure out the marketing and campaigns. I’m constantly looking at other brands in different spaces to see where I can come in and help. I’ve learned so much through investing in SipMargs. I am only 24, so the more situations I can put myself in where I’m able to learn helps me excel.

You share so much of your life online, so I’m curious, what’s one thing your fans don’t know about you?

They don’t know the extent of my problem with chewing. When there is someone chewing or smacking gum or something around me, I just completely shrivel up. That is a side they don’t really see. My family definitely sees that.