Heavy/ABC DWTS judge Carrie Ann Inaba apologized after Disney Night.
The “Dancing with the Stars” judges had a lot of commentary to dole out during Disney Night, and there were some moments of frustration and tension in the ballroom. After the show, judge Carrie Ann Inaba took to social media to apologize and address her role in some tense moments that came during the broadcast.
Here’s what you need to know:
Carrie Ann Inaba Interrupted Derek Hough
“Dancing with the Stars” fans could not help but notice what appeared to be a tense moment as the judges were sharing their critiques on Lele Pons and Brandon Armstrong’s performance on “Disney Night.”
Bruno Tonioli shared his thoughts first and then came Inaba. Just as Derek Hough started speaking, Inaba interjected to say something about the lift in Pons and Armstrong’s dance.
Hough paused, Inaba said, “Oh, sorry,” and Hough started to talk again. However, Inaba immediately interjected again to call out, “There was a lift!”
Inaba acknowledged she has “a thing” about lifts, and she continued to blurt out tidbits. The two judges talked over one another as Hough’s time to comment whittled away.
Tonioli actually got out of his chair, turned around, and turned back again, looking rather rattled and exasperated. Hough appeared rattled and frustrated too and he asked if he had more time to comment.
Once everybody else quieted down, and Hough had a chance to talk, he then shared he had lost his train of thought. He told Pons, “I had so much to say to you, but, I’ll tell you after the show. Well done.”
As Armstrong and Pons received their scores, Inaba and Hough were both clearly still a bit rattled. “I’ll talk to ya after the show,” Hough said again to Pons, as he held up his paddle.
Hough was so flustered that he actually held up the paddle with the wrong score. Inaba reacted as Hough again told Pons he’d share his feedback after the show, appearing embarrassed or regretful she had previously interrupted him.
Inaba Shared an Apology for Hough on Social Media
Before she left the studio on Disney Night, Inaba took to Instagram to apologize. The apology was seemingly posted in a now-expired Instagram Story, but other Instagram accounts saved it and shared it on their pages.
“This is my public apology to Derek Hough for yelling out about a lift in the middle of his time,” Inaba began. The “Dancing with the Stars” judge continued, “I feel really bad and I just wanted to make a public apology because I know what that’s like when you lose a train of thought.”
Inaba quipped that she loses her train of thought “even when nobody’s yelling in my ear.” She further explained, “But I wanted to explain why the score was what was was because I did dock a point for the lift.”
The “Dancing with the Stars” judge noted that Pons needs to “keep her foot on the ground” and added that Armstrong “knows that.” She then said, “No big deal. Last week, I just gave warnings, but once again, I’m so sorry Derek.”
‘Dancing With the Stars’ Fans Noted Their Frustrations
It appeared that “Dancing with the Stars” fans were not necessarily impressed by Inaba’s apology. In the show’s subreddit, there was a lot of ongoing backlash toward Inaba.
“She does not seem sorry at all to me… She just did a bad job convincing me she cares,” one Redditor shared after seeing the apology.
“I miss Len. If she tried to pull this when Len was head judge he would [have politely] told her off then gave his critique… It’s interesting watching the new dynamic at the judges table,” added another.
“She should also be apologizing to LELE & BRANDON!!! She was so rude to cut Derek off, keep going, not allow L & B to receive feedback from Derek and then justify her actions with this comment,” someone else critiqued.
“I feel like everyone is acting weird. [I don’t know] if something is going on behind the scenes but theres a dark energy around this season lowkey,” suggested another Redditor in a separate thread.