Anna Delvey jokes about her criminal past on ‘DWTS’: Fake heiress’s prison humor lands her in trouble
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: On the Season 33 premiere episode of 'Dancing with the Stars', Anna Delvey-aka the fake heiress-made a dubious comment about serving time. As she was introduced, Delvey smiled and joked, "It was hard to leave jail." She referred to her time behind bars and noted that the ankle bracelet she was wearing is one of the conditions of her release.
Immediately, what was supposed to be an off-handed comment went sour with the audience and critics alike. Many were bothered by Delvey's comment because of her background in crime and the heinous nature of her offenses. This dissipated any praise for her performance, as this comment became a talking point amongst viewers and also amongst media.
What did the 'DWTS' judges say about Anna Delvey's performance?
The judges had mixed reactions to Anna Delvey's performance on 'Dancing with the Stars', which was a pretty exact reflection of how complex it was a debut. Judge Carrie Ann Inaba acknowledged the challenge Anna had and asked the audience for a fair chance. While stating the challenge, Carrie Ann also seemed to focus on motivating Anna rather than elaborating on the critique related to her dancing. Then Bruno Tonioli was a little more critical but equalized his criticism by allowing motivation. He stated that Anna's cha-cha was not smooth and did not have the precision to yield a performance worth recognition. He made it a point to mention that though there were prominent mistakes, ample scope for improvement was present.
Lastly, Derek Hough went straight to the point and said Anna was uneven. He felt that she was forcing the moves and needed to work more on her rhythm and connection with the dance.
On a general note, what the judges were trying to say is that Anna did have some potential, but her performance in the cha-cha was uneven and had much room for improvement.
Why does Anna Delvey wear a bedazzled ankle monitor on 'DWTS'?
Anna Delvey walked into the Season 33 premiere of 'Dancing with the Stars' with an appropriately bedazzled ankle monitor. The decoration was created to match her colorful Cha-Cha costume purposefully calling out her past notoriety as a convicted felon. Delvey danced to Sabrina Carpenter's "Espresso" and flirted with the monitor, saying, "I overstayed my visa because I was in jail so it's kind of hard to leave." She added, "I did serve my time," implying that now she wants to reinvent herself through dance.
The judges were split regarding Delvey. Derek Hough felt she had "a lot of potential" but was "kind of lost for words." He could see that she might turn into a "really beautiful dancer." Whereas, Carrie Ann Inaba was encouraging but reminded viewers to keep in mind that Delvey was there to dance and they should look past her history and give her a chance. Delvey's appearance on the show-an ankle monitor being the tip of the hat to her legal woes-is a major selling point of her storyline on 'DWTS'. That said, her casting is and continues to be surrounded by controversy and hotly debated.
