How much did Whitney Leavitt earn from ‘DWTS’? Mark Ballas had ‘gut feeling’ about jaw-dropping elimination
Mark Ballas and Whitney Leavitt's unexpected elimination was an absolute shocker for fans. The pair was eliminated from the 'Dancing With the Stars' episode on November 18. They performed to 'Slow Love on an evening themed for the legendary Prince. With the exit, Dylan Efron, Robert Irwin, Alix Earle, Jordan Chiles, and Elaine Hendrix remain in the mix.
From a moolah standpoint, $125,000 is a common starting salary for celebrity contestants, per Variety. Multiple reports added that there would be a bump of $10,000 per episode for weeks three and four, and $20,000 per episode for weeks five and six. Weeks seven and eight would fetch $30,000 per episode, and a whopping $50,000 per episode for the final two weeks. With Leavitt making it to the semis, there is a possibility she made an estimated $310,000. It's worth noting that this is an estimated number, which would have seen another sharp climb had she progressed further.
But it appears that Ballas and Leavitt are at peace despite the gut-wrenching exit. In an interview with Good Morning America after the show’s Prince Night episode, Ballas weighed in on the exit. "Every week she’s like, ‘I don’t think I’m gonna make it.’ I’m like, ‘You’re gonna make it. You’re gonna make it. It’s gonna be okay. But I think today, we both had a — I don’t know. Sometimes you just get gut feelings, you know?"
On her part, Leavitt had told cohosts Alfonso Ribeiro and Julianne Hough that she felt "like a winner" after the elimination. "This show has meant the absolute world for me,” Leavitt said. "It’s changed my life, and I will forever be so grateful for the friendships I’ve made. To have this experience, thank you so, so much!" She later reiterated the same sentiment when speaking on GMA.
"It was worth it. I meant what I said tonight. It’s gonna sound cheesy, but I truly feel like it’s changed my life, and I will forever be so grateful for that. I mean, I’m gonna be honest. I didn’t even think I was gonna make it this far." She also had some lavish praise for her husband, Conner. "It brought us so much closer; I will forever be so grateful. I feel like he really picked up the—I shouldn't say slack, but I wasn't at home. He was a stay-at-home dad, keeping the house clean, tending to the kids. I have a baby who's still getting up in the night, and he'd get up with our baby. I wouldn't have been able to do this without him."
'Dancing With the Stars' Season 34 airs Tuesdays, 8/7c, ABC and Disney+