“Dancing with the Stars” season 34 has gained mass social media popularity with the help of younger professional dancers Rylee Arnold and Ezra Sosa. With that comes typical scrutiny across platforms, but in this case, it appears to be justified.
Most recently, the show has been receiving intense backlash after contestant Whitney Leavitt was eliminated this past Tuesday, Nov. 18. While some fans online were thrilled to see the reality TV star step off the dance floor, others were shocked and angered by the unexpected elimination.
Judge Carrie Ann Inaba specifically received criticism over the last score she gave Leavitt and pro partner Mark Ballas. Inaba gave the couple a 9 for their Viennese waltz to Prince’s “Slow Love,” while fellow judges Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli gave 10s. Inaba defended her scoring by saying there were “two little hops” during the dance, which are considered lifts and illegal in the Viennese waltz. Hough can be heard saying, “A hop? I didn’t see a hop.”
Inaba has been a stickler about illegal lifts since the show’s premiere 20 years ago, so this deduction is not entirely surprising. What did surprise fans was that just one week earlier, Inaba threw her lift rules out the window for wildlife conservationist Robert Irwin.
On Nov. 11, Irwin and pro partner Witney Carson danced a foxtrot, another style that does not allow lifts. Inaba specifically told Irwin and Carson that she was ignoring her long-standing lift policy for them and scored their routine with a 10.
This scoring blunder is not the only reason fans are calling the show sexist. Comedian Andy Richter was a source of extreme controversy before his elimination. While many enjoyed watching him and thought he embodied what the show was made for, a lot of fans believed his longer-than-expected run in the ballroom spoke to misogyny both in the show and in greater society. Richter began consistently receiving 7s and 8s a few weeks into the competition, though his routines were clearly behind the other dancers in style and technique.
There was a tone both on and off the dance floor that Richter was “old and trying his best.” However, celeb Elaine Hendrix is only four years younger and still dancing circles around him. Fans across social media blasted judges and other voters for “babying” the comedian while holding the women in his age category to a much higher standard.
Furthermore, celeb Danielle Fishel has spoken out about her difficulties as a woman on the show since being eliminated Nov. 4. Most notably, Fishel discussed the production crew cutting a meaningful story out of her package. Before each couple dances, a “package” of rehearsal clips and interviews airs to give context for the performance.
On Nov. 4, Fishel and pro partner Pasha Pashkov performed a contemporary piece to “Dream On” by Aerosmith. Fishel discussed her elimination on her podcast “Danielle with…,” where she explained that Pashkov asked what she wanted to convey through their dance after their use of “Dream On” was approved.
Fishel said, “Our story is about the impossible standards placed on women both from society and from ourselves.”
She said Pashkov loved the idea and was thrilled to create choreography that would bring it to life. Fishel expressed her surprise that this entire backstory was cut from her package, saying, “When we were on the ballroom floor, I was like, listening to my package and I was like…none of that was even mentioned, like none of my story was even in the package.” The erasure was a stinging blow for Fishel and Pashkov and for women in general.
Overall, season 34 has started a conversation that is growing louder with each episode. The inconsistencies in scoring, unequal treatment of contestants and erasure of women’s stories all point to issues the show can no longer ignore with its growing social media popularity.
Watch “Dancing with the Stars” Season 34 here.
Listen to “Danielle with…” here.