Carrie Ann Inaba Explains Why She Was Worried About Season 33 Contestant During Live Show

Heavy/Disney Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli.

“Dancing With the Stars”  judge Carrie Ann Inaba was worried about one of the season 33 contestants after he appeared out of sorts following his week 2 dance.

In a September 2024 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Inaba explained why she asked NFL wide receiver Danny Amendola if he was “okay” after she critiqued the jive he performed with his pro partner Witney Carson.

“I thought he was having trouble catching his breath after the dance, and I wanted to offer him water,” Inaba told the outlet of the former New England Patriots player. “His eyes were a bit glazed over, and he wasn’t making eye contact with the judges while we were speaking. I’ve experienced many health challenges, and I just wanted to check and see if he needed to sit down for a moment or have some water.”

Carrie Ann Inaba Has Seen Many Dancers Almost ‘Black Out’

DisneyDanny Amendola and Witney Carson.

Following Amendola and Carson’s energetic “Danger Zone” themed dance on September 24, Inaba and fellow judges Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli awarded the duo an impressive 21 out of 30 points. During her critique, Inaba raved about Amendola’s improvement from the previous week and said he was “on fire.” But as she observed him from across the stage, she asked twice, “Are you okay?”

Inaba explained that she was zeroed in on Amendola due to her own health history. The veteran DWTS judge has been diagnosed with multiple autoimmune issues. Inaba has been open about her struggles with lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, and Sjogren’s syndrome.

Of her reaction to Amendola, she told EW, “Dance is quite a physical experience and after a dance performance, I’ve seen many people get dizzy and almost ‘black out.’ His performance was sooooo high energy and he may have been surprised at how much it took out of him. That’s why they call it ‘DanceSport.'”

A Past ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Contestant Passed Out Onstage

ABCMarie Osmond on Dancing With the Stars

Fans previously saw a “Dancing With the Stars” celebrity pass out on stage during a live show. In 2007, season 5 competitor Marie Osmond fainted after performing a samba with her partner Jonathan Roberts. Osmond fell to the ground as the judges were critiquing her dance. Host Tom Bergeron quickly cut to a commercial after the “Paper Roses” singer fainted on live TV. She was helped up and alert by the time the commercial break was over.

According to Fox News, Bergeron later told the audience, “I want to just quote her exactly. … The first words out of her mouth when she saw us all leaning over her were, ‘Oh, crap.’”

Osmond explained, “Once in a while that happens to me when I get winded. I stop breathing.” She later told OK magazine that she was “fine.” “I do have really bad allergies, and I haven’t done my inhaler,” she explained. “I didn’t have it with me…and the air quality is so bad due to the L.A. fires.”

In 2013, former “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills”  star Lisa Vanderpump fainted while rehearsing a cha-cha with pro dancer Gleb Savchenko. Her sudden collapse was caught by a cameraman and the rehearsal footage aired on the show.

In a post for her blog for People magazine, Vanderpump explained that had been under the weather after a busy week of travel. “By the time Thursday rehearsals rolled around – let’s just say I was exhausted, and everything felt off. Gleb and I were rehearsing our cha cha and suddenly I just blacked out,” she wrote.

Vanderpump was ultimately diagnosed with a viral infection with a fever and swollen glands. “Between trying to fight that and all of the stress on my body from running around, I ended up with low blood pressure and a rapid heart rate, which is why I fainted,” she shared with fans. “I was in shock when I woke up.”