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The latest episode of Dancing With The Stars left viewers in disbelief as Whitney Leavitt, a prominent contestant during Season 34, was unexpectedly eliminated. Whitney, who gained fame through her role in The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, had consistently been praised as one of the season’s top performers.
In the aftermath of this surprising turn, fellow contestant Andy Richter voiced his discontent with Whitney’s departure. Expressing his views, Andy suggested that there might have been underlying factors influencing the decision to send her home.
Whitney, alongside her dance partner, the skilled Mark Ballas, faced the unexpected exit. In a conversation with Entertainment Weekly, Andy shared his astonishment over the results. He acknowledged the criticism from fans who questioned how he remained in the competition while a dancer of Whitney’s caliber was let go.
Andy Praised Whitney’s Dance Ability
After it was announced that Whitney and her partner, dance pro Mark Ballas, were the ones being sent home, Andy spoke with Entertainment Weekly about his shock about the elimination. He alluded to criticism from fans that he himself remained in the competition when a more experienced dancer like Whitney had been cut:
I think Whitney going home, to me it’s absolutely insane. I mean, she’s an amazing dancer. And if all the sticklers who were furious about me still being in it, who were demanding perfect technical dancing, I don’t know why she would get sent home under that criterion.
Andy even wondered if there was more going on with fan voting that explained the situation. He admitted that he’d seen discourse online where viewers had said they wanted Whitney out simply because they didn’t like her.
“It’s a good way to sort of take the temperature of what the audience is feeling in terms of voting,” he said. “I’ve seen forever, there’s like people just like, ‘Whitney’s gotta go,’ and I’m just like, ‘What? Why?’” he added. He noted that he and Whitney grew close during their time in the competition, noting that he found her to be “the sweetest, most positive” person throughout the experience.
Whitney Says Her Elimination Felt “Like A Breakup”
It seems like Whitney wasn’t as caught off-guard about her elimination as Andy was. She and partner Mark shared that they “had a gut feeling” that this was the week they’d be packing their bags.
That said, the elimination still struck Whitney as very painful. She explained how close she’d grown with the others in such a short span of time:
You build long-lasting friendships here with production, crew—obviously with Mark. You spend so much time with these people every single day, so it does feel like a breakup. It’s like, I’m sad, but also I’m leaving with just a grateful heart, to have been able to experience it.
Whitney did manage to outlast her fellow The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives castmate, Jen Affleck, who was eliminated shortly before in a very bittersweet moment. The remaining five celebrities on DWTS Season 34 include Alix Earle, Robert Irwin, Elaine Hendrix, Dylan Efron and Jordan Chiles.
In the meantime, Whitney can be seen on the latest season of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives on Hulu. Ironically, the season takes place over the course of the last year, so Whitney can be seen in the early stages of auditioning for DWTS, desperate to join the competition.
