Fans are angry with season 33 “Dancing With the Stars” contestant Anna Delvey following her comments about the show.
“I feel that the show so obviously used me to drive up the ratings, that they never had any plans to give me any chance to grow and only cared about exploiting me for attention,” Delvey told NBC News via email.
“It was predatory of them to try [to] make me feel inadequate and stupid all while I did get progressively better yet they chose to disregard that,” she continued.
“It felt like I was never really given a fair chance by the viewers or some of the judges’ given their nonsensical scoring. It’s supposed to be a dance competition and not a popularity contest,” she added.
Her comments came after she and her pro partner, Ezra Sosa, were sent home during the first elimination of the season.
Delvey is on house arrest following a jail sentence after being found guilty of financial crimes. She needed special permission to compete on the dance competition show and wore an ankle monitor.
Some DWTS Fans Reacted to Anna Delvey’s Comments on Reddit
Someone shared Delvey’s comments about “Dancing With the Stars” on Reddit where dozens of fans reacted.
“Someone who preyed on some hardworking people’s money (as well as some affluent people)— is calling out a silly dance show as predatory? Sure Jan,” one person wrote.
“This is the behavior I was expecting from her. Predatory?? Honestly she should be grateful she was thrown a bone. She’s trying to prolong her 5 minutes. It was acknowledged that she had the beginnings of dancing talents, she had ballet experience. I could see the talent too. but she overshadowed that by not smiling, not trying and being a shit person. If she felt inadequate and stupid, that’s completely on her,” someone else said.
“Did they make her dancing atrocious or make her say really unlikeable things? No. She was handed an opportunity for money and to soften public opinion on a large scale that almost zero other felons ever get in life, and she squandered it,” another Redditor added.
“I hope to never see her again. Deport her already,” a fourth comment read.
Ezra Sosa Thinks Anna Delvey Elimination Upset Her
Delvey hasn’t shown much gratitude for the opportunity to take part in “Dancing With the Stars.” However, her pro partner admits that the elimination hurt Delvey’s feelings — just a bit.
“When we were eliminated, I could tell from the jump just staring at her face, she was a little upset about it,” Sosa told Entertainment Weekly.
“So I was like, ‘She’s going to go off on [cohost] Julianne [Hough], I can see it happening.’ But when she said, ‘Nothing,’ I was like, ‘I’ll take it, this is good.’ It was so iconic though,” he added.
Sosa has remained positive through his first experience as a pro on the series.
“I’m very happy with my last dance with Anna. I really do think she improved ever since her first week so I’m glad — even though it’s cut short. I think the most heartbreaking thing for me was that I wasn’t able to give her a better experience, because I think she had a really hard time on the show. But all in all, I think her exit was so iconic, and I’m just glad to be a part of it,” he told EW.
Meanwhile, he also shared a message to Delvey on Instagram following their elimination.
“I want to thank you for dancing with me and for opening up. You allowed me to see a side of you that not many have, and I’m grateful for that. I truly hope that one day, America gets to meet that side of you too. They will love her just as much as I do. Wishing you the best and can’t wait to hangout and make TikTok’s soon,” he wrote, in part.
