It is hard to find a lot of people in the Bravosphere who like Tom Sandoval. Now, I imagine that even fewer people would want to work for the most hated man on reality TV. But it seems everyone who is a C-list celebrity or above feels the need to have a personal assistant by their side at all times. Tom doesn’t have many allies on his team, so he may have needed to dig deep into those pockets and buy a friend. But I can’t say I blame the guy.
Tom has been busy on a world tour with his band, Tom Sandoval & The Most Extras, running two relatively successful bars and filming Vanderpump Rules. So, I dare say that he probably needed a bit of help organizing his life. Insert his new personal assistant, Craig Johns Jr. The PA is there to help Tom with all his day-to-day needs, and it seems Sandy may have found a kindred spirit, too.
Who is Craig?
Even though we all loved Ann Maddox, Tom wasted no time in replacing her. During a recent episode, fans met what could have been a carbon copy of Tom or a long-lost twin brother at best. Sandoval introduced his new busy bee by saying, “We’re kind of a duo.” It turns out the two first met when Craig was a bartender at Schwartz & Sandy’s. But there is more than meets the eye, as the 29-year-old is an editor, actor, and musician by day and a questionable personal assistant by night.
Craig is pretty friendly with the Vanderpump Rules cast, including Tom Schwartz, Kyle Chan, and Jo Wenberg. None of whom will help him win a place amongst the OG cast, but it’s a start. For the little screen time we’ve seen of Craig, it feels like he wants to stay a bit below the radar, get his job done, and cash those checks.
What is Craig expected to do?
Craig’s primary duty is to act as a personal walkie-talkie between Tom and Ariana Madix. Even though Ariana had now bought her own place, at the time, both shared their beloved Valley Village home. The latest episode had Craig interrupting Ariana’s gym routine to see if Sandy could use the gym next. Craig politely asked, “Just gotta grab a few things real quick. Do you know how long you’re gonna be in here? Tom wanted to get in a workout at some point as well.” I honestly can’t imagine how awkward this would be as part of a job description.
As seen in multiple episodes, Craig is expected to tidy up after Tom, make him tea, and figure out his barrage of packages. Craig is also in charge of helping Sandy make some big life decisions, specifically what to do with his house. The two sat on a phone call with Tom’s realtors as Tom noted he was now at the home “all the time.”
Craig is so LA
Craig’s Instagram has a super grunge aesthetic, including black-and-white band photos. He has tattoos all over, including a sleeve. He seems to embrace the rock and roll lifestyle, which includes piercings. Craig’s cover of Citizen’s Thin Air is actually pretty good. I am not ashamed to say I listened to it a half-dozen times because I wasn’t expecting the vocal ability.
What happened to Ann?
Ann was the unsung hero of Season 11 and started as Tom’s assistant. She was sweet and considerate and seemed to do a very thorough job, especially after Tom’s singles pool party. Sadly, according to Tom, “Things didn’t work out with Ann.” The irony wasn’t lost on me that Craig was allowed to go play paintball with the gang while Ann was forced to pick up Sandy’s dirty underwear.
But don’t worry for Ann because she landed on her feet. She currently is working for Ariana and Katie Maloney, lending a hand to their business venture, Something About Her. Ann also just launched her podcast, We Signed An NDA. The podcast centers around pop culture with a focus on reality TV. Both hosts are hoping to give a platform that Hollywood overlooks, which could be interesting to listen to.
Watch Vanderpump Rules each Tuesday at 8 PM/ET on Bravo.
TELL US – DO YOU THINK TOM’S NEW ASSISTANT WILL STAND THE TEST OF TIME? OR WILL HE RUN AWAY LIKE ANN?
