Olivia Dunne has done it all. She has modeled for Sports Illustrated, landed a role in the Baywatch reboot after building one of the most lucrative NIL (Name, image and likeness) empires in college sports history. But going from uneven bars to behind an actual bar was a challenge she did not expect to be hard. Ahead of Paul Skenes’ All-Star Week appearance, Dunne was spotted behind the bar and discovered it’s much harder than it looks.

The 23-year-old former LSU gymnast showed up at Stateside Live! as a guest bartender for a few hours and made quite a mark.

“Bartending today at Stateside Live!” Dunne posted on her Instagram Story. “4pm, come say hi!”

Unfortunately, things didn’t quite go according to plan. While she may have been an excellent gymnast and has since thrived as a model and actor, her bartending gig wasn’t perfect.

Instead, while Dunne handed out bottles of Miller Lite to the crowd, she couldn’t quite get the hang of pouring drafts. She shared her first attempt on her story as well, with the caption “Foam 1, Me 0. Still working on my form.”

She looked pretty pleased with herself as onlookers laughed in support, although the rest of her time as a bartender seemed to go well. The 23-year-old has kept herself rather busy since retiring from gymnastics in April 2025, becoming a full-time social media influencer. It has worked wonders for her, and it’s why Olivia Dunne was one of the highest-paid NIL athletes of her time.

That was after the now 23-year-old realised at the time that her dreams of going to the Olympics were no longer feasible after a career-threatening ankle injury. Instead, she pivoted to social media and began creating her presence just before NIL kicked in. That allowed her to make an almost seamless transition into life after collegiate gymnastics, using that fame as a springboard.

“LSU has always had athletes with star power, and they were never able to capitalize off of their star power and their NIL,” Dunne told Boardroom.tv. “My freshman year, I wasn’t able to capitalize on my NIL that whole year, but I didn’t really care because I just loved to do social media.”

“I didn’t know the money and the opportunities that could come with it until the rule did change. I was upset at the time when, during my freshman year, I wasn’t able to take a free sweatshirt. I didn’t really know what could come with being the highest-earning female athlete.”

Now, she’s an actor who is currently filming the Baywatch reboot alongside Stephen Amell, Shay Mitchell and other Hollywood stars. Not just that, Olivia Dunne also models and has recently made an appearance on Jimmy Fallon while supporting boyfriend Paul Skeenes’ MLB career.

That willingness to try something new has become a defining theme of Dunne’s life after gymnastics. Even before NIL and Hollywood came calling, she knew her interests stretched far beyond the competition floor.

Olivia Dunne reveals she’s always gravitated towards creative things

Like most athletes, especially gymnasts, Olivia Dunne dreamed of being an Olympian. From the moment she took to the mat, Dunne believed she could go to the Olympic Games. And the talent was there; before her ankle injury, the now 23-year-old was an elite-level gymnast. She rose rapidly through the ranks, turning senior in 2018, before tragedy struck. Just before her debut at the 2018 US Classic, Dunne injured her ankle but still competed in the meet.

She only competed on the uneven bars, though, and following that, her injury dictated her way forward. Dunne could only focus on collegiate-level gymnastics, limiting her career as a gymnast. However, she joined LSU and was a key part of the team, even winning the 2024 NCAA Championship, the school’s first-ever.

Olivia Dunne’s future, though, was a different question altogether, and she needed to look for another way forward. And luckily for her, social media proved to be the perfect platform to help showcase her more creative side. That has always been something that’s attracted her, which is why she started taking acting classes and more.

“I gravitate towards things that are more creative,” Dunne told Boardroom.tv. “My family is quite creative. I come from a family of entrepreneurs. I would love to dive into acting.

“I’ve been doing lots of auditions and rehearsing scripts and getting used to that lifestyle, which has been amazing because it’s something I’ve been passionate about ever since I was in college. I couldn’t find the balance between being a student athlete and working with brands. So it’s something I took on after college and it’s been so much fun.”

However, that’s not the end for her. While her social media empire has been nearly five years in the making, Olivia Dunne has bigger goals.

“I really want my own thing one day,” she added. “I look at Hailey Bieber actually, I saw her a few weeks ago at the Super Bowl, and I just was like, “You’re a badass businesswoman.” I look at that, and I think it’s really amazing and honestly inspiring to young women, because I want to be like her.”

The bartending shift may have been a light-hearted detour, but it reflects the path Dunne has deliberately carved. For now, whether behind a bar, on set, or online, she’s continuing to build a career entirely on her own terms.