‘Dancing With the Stars’ Fans Left ‘Confused’ & Upset After Prom Night

ABC "Dancing With the Stars" season 31 viewers were left "confused" after the Prom Night dance marathon.

Some fans of “Dancing With the Stars” are expressing their frustration with the show after the Tuesday, October 18, 2022 episode aired on Disney+.

During the episode, there was a dance marathon where each of the couples performed the same type of dance at the same time in front of judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough, Len Goodman, and Bruno Tonioli. Throughout the competition, couples were tapped out until only one couple was left standing.

The winner of the dance marathon was Jessie James Decker, who was at the bottom of the leaderboard going into the end of the episode. Because of the 11 extra points she received, she moved up and was kept out of the bottom two.

It’s important to note that scores during the episode are combined with votes from viewers to determine the bottom two. At the time of writing, there is no indication that Decker would have placed in the bottom two without the points she earned during the dance marathon.

Still, Joseph Baena and Daniella Karagach were ultimately sent home at the end of the night, which upset some fans. Some people went as far as calling the competition rigged.

Heavy has reached out to Disney+ for comment about the Dance Marathon rules and the elimination process and has not received a response.

Fans Were ‘Confused’ About the Dance Marathon Rules & Wanted More Accommodations for Deaf Contestant Daniel Durant

Some fans took to social media to share their frustration about the dance marathon.

“Anyone else extremely confused about how they chose to eliminate couples from the dance marathon? Seemed super random,” one person tweeted.

Another person wrote, “Not a fan of including the dance marathon and staging in the way they did when they have a deaf contestant in the cast. Proper representation requires accommodation and accessibility. Watching them do the marathon only to tap out Daniel [Durant] first was infuriating.”

Durant has been a fan-favorite contestant since the early days of the competition, but he has received lower scores in the past few episodes, leaving some fans worried that he’ll be sent home soon.

Others posted about the marathon on Reddit, saying that Baena was “robbed,” and one poster called the marathon “fishy.”

“Never seen a contestant done that wrong on the show getting them eliminated,” one person wrote on Reddit. “I know he was a middle of the pack guy with a middle of the pack fan base but holy sh** you have to feel bad for him after what went down last night.”

Baena Says Being Eliminated Feels Like the ‘Worst Breakup’

Baena took to TikTok after being eliminated to share that being voted off felt like the “worst breakup” he’s ever experienced.

“Why does getting eliminated from DWTS feel like the worst breakup of my life,” he wrote in the video. The caption for the video reads, “I miss you already @daniellakaragach.”

Fans took to the comments to call for “Justice for Joseph!”

Karagach called working with Baena an “absolute pleasure.”

“You are one of the purest souls I’ve met in a long time,” Karagach wrote on Instagram. “Our journey wasn’t always easy but we found our path and made it our own. I’m extremely proud of you and the dancer you’ve transformed into.”

This is the only time Karagach has been voted off “Dancing With the Stars.” In her first season, she made it through to the finale with Nelly, though they did not win. In her second season, season 30, she was partnered with Iman Shumpert and won the Mirrorball trophy.

“Dancing With the Stars” airs on Mondays at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Disney+.