Alix Earle is giving new meaning to the phrase “logged on.”
The influencer, 25, scored her third consecutive Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue photoshoot, photographed by Ruven Afanador in Botswana.
This time, however, Earle landed herself a cover — joining Hilary Duff, Tiffany Haddish and Nicole Williams English as the 2026 leading ladies.
While she shows off her cures on the cover in a teeny Andi Bagus string bikini, inside the glossy the Reale Actives founder wears a bikini top carved from African acacia wood.
The bikini top ($381) by La Paz features two sculpted cups strung together with wooden beads, which also run up the halter strap. Earle paired it with beaded crochet thong bottoms by Andi Bagus and posed alongside elephants, zebras and a giraffe.
“I’ve learned to push myself out of my comfort zone — in fact, I’d say that getting uncomfortable is how you start feeling more comfortable,” Earle told the magazine.
The TikTok star — who has amassed over 14 million followers across platforms — first joined the SI Swimsuit franchise as its inaugural digital cover star in 2024, then made her print debut the following year in Jamaica.
Unconventional swimwear has become a calling card for the University of Miami grad; her 2026 spread also features a $3,700 pearl-covered bikini top by Audrey Blake hand-sewn with 1,000 real pearls.
Elsewhere in the shoot, the “Dancing With the Stars” alum — who placed second in Season 34 — lounged at a safari lodge in neutral-tone bikinis by Norma Kamali and Água de Coco, accessorized with bandanas and lug-soled boots.
She also channeled fashion history in a version of the 1968 Yves Saint Laurent safari tunic, made famous by supermodel Veruschka in French Vogue.
Earle admitted she still felt some nerves before the shoot, even the third time around. “I doubt myself, I worry … I’m human,” she said.
It’s been a big year for the content creator; in addition to her “DWTS” run, she launched “fun, sexy” acne skincare line Reale Actives in March and landed a Netflix reality show, set to premiere later this year.
