Season 28 of Dancing With the Stars has been stirring up a little bit of controversy with a few shocking eliminations, and many surprised that despite consistently low scores, Sean Spicer has yet to even find himself in the bottom two.
Now, halfway through the season, it isn’t only fans who are voicing their frustration after the Monday, November 4 episode saw Ally Brooke and Kate Flannery in the bottom two with the judges having to decide one to send home. “I’m absolutely confused and a little irritated,” Carrie Ann Inaba candidly stated after the bottom two was revealed.
For his part, Spicer also knows how lucky he is to constantly avoid the bottom two despite having the lowest scores week after week. “I knew what my scores were and I know how well the rest of the cast had done, so to be called out first [as safe] was just a massive relief,” he told Us Weekly after the most recent episode. “The look for me this week was about bouncing back from last week and showing Lindsay that all of her hard work had paid off.”
“I know how hard everyone else is working too and you feel bad because you see their progression and so yeah, it’s tough,” he shared. “It’s this mixed emotion that I’ve had, especially the last few weeks when you are watching someone that you’ve grown close to or that you know, and then you know how hard they’ve worked and they have to go home while your scores weren’t as high.” He added that he knows the reason he hasn’t been in jeopardy is because of the votes and thanked fans for that. “I have tremendous respect for the people that are taking time out of their night to vote for me,” he said. “I want to show them how much I appreciate their vote and how hard I want to work to continue on.”
What has been particularly frustrating for fans, judges, and contestants is that DWTS changed up the elimination process this year by presenting the bottom two couples to the three judges who then have to vote for who they want to save. While this tweak in the process was meant to make eliminations more fair, the flaw has proven to be that the worst dancer still can’t be sent home if they don’t even make it to the bottom two thanks to fan votes. “It’s frustrating. There are really great dancers being sent home, but that is part of our show. It’s always been the audience and the judges’ perspective. I can’t be so mad at it, but it’s frustrating. … I would like to beg the public to remember that this is a dance competition. Of course, vote with your heart, but also take a moment to consider everybody else in the competition, and are you voting for the right person?” Carrie Ann Inaba added.
Bruno Tonioli added, “They have to vote [and] make the vote based on actual achievement. Know what people are giving to you within the competition. ‘Oh, he’s so nice, he’s just such a nice person.’ Well, yeah, I agree, but come on. You have to recognize the effort and the merit. America is built on recognizing what you put in life and getting the rewards based on what you put in. So remember that.”
Head judge Len Goodman also didn’t hide his feelings about how Spicer should have been long gone by now: “He’s very popular with a certain element of the viewers, not the real dance fans. … You haven’t got to be a weatherman to see which way the wind blows. He should have gone three weeks ago before Sailor went! But it is what it is. The judges say this and the viewers say that and then it all comes out as it is.”
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Telisa Carter
Telisa enjoys learning and writing about all things entertainment in the world of Hollywood. When she isn't catching up on her favorite TV shows, she likes to read, and obsess over all things football.
