Can Dancing With the Stars Regain Its Credibility Following Disastrous Anna Delvey Casting?
When Dancing With the Stars announced the roster of celebs who’d be taking part in the upcoming season, I was glad to see that none of our favorite daytime performers would be performing. Why? Because I did not want to feel even the slightest bit compelled to watch, despite having once been a a pretty big fan of the show. (Who amongst us didn’t get a thrill when General Hospital‘s Kelly Monaco did daytime proud by walking away with the Mirror Ball trophy? And don’t get us started on her being robbed soon thereafter!)
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But somewhere along the way, Dancing With the Stars decided that it would become the first stop for those looking to redeem their sullied reputation. You might recall that former host Tom Bergeron was axed after he very publicly voiced his disapproval of the show casting former White House press secretary Sean Spicer in Season 28.
To be clear, Bergeron’s disapproval was not partisan, but rather his belief that the show should avoid becoming embroiled in politics at all. Instead, he believed that the show should be a refuge from controversy. (You can read more about his exit here.) Flash-forward to the about-to-debut season and the casting of Anna Delvey.
Like millions of others, I was fascinated by the conwoman’s story in general and the 2022 Netflix miniseries Inventing Anna. We, as a people, are often drawn to stories like hers. “How,” we wonder, “did she get away with it? How was she caught?” We are, after all, only human.
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But as the outcry surrounding Delvey’s Dancing With the Stars casting would seem to prove, we don’t want to see people who’ve so brazenly and unapologetically lied, cheated and otherwise violated the social contract we have with one another given a platform on which to redeem themselves.
Unlike, say, Stephen “Pommel Horse Guy” Nedoroscik, Delvey is not someone whose “accomplishments,” such as they are, should be celebrated. The fact that ABC is literally selling her as “notorious ankle bracelet fashionista” as opposed to “convicted felon” is, I assume, their attempt at cheekiness. It is, however, disturbing to many would-be viewers, myself included.
As a war of words broke out between Whoopi Goldberg and Delvey, we asked our Facebook followers for their thoughts on the controversy. While I expected some would defend the decision to cast the conwoman, not a single person — as of this moment — has done so. Instead, every comment generally echoed the sentiment expressed by Tami Rainwater Spurgeon, who wrote that “the American public will show their displeasure by simply voting her out fairly quickly. Still, it’s a shame she will get monetarily rewarded for being a con artist. She’s no star!”
Had ABC cast Julia Garner, the actress who scored an Emmy nom for playing Delvey in the Netflix miniseries, I’d have happily cheered her on. She is, after all, a star playing a conwoman not a conwoman trying to become a star.
Only time will tell how far Delvey makes it in the competition, not to mention whether her casting will have a negative impact on the show’s steadily-declining ratings. And yes, we will inevitably wind up reporting on Delvey and her progress, given that Dancing With the Stars has proven popular with our readers.
But unless and until the show makes a pretty drastic change in the people it decides to elevate, I’ll be joining those of you looking for something — anything — else to watch.
This isn’t the first time Dancing With the Stars has been mired in scandal, as shown in the gallery below.
