When the cast for season 33 of Dancing With The Stars was released on Wednesday, many were shocked to see the convicted con artist Anna Delvey’s name on the list. On Thursday morning, Whoopi Goldberg and her co-hosts of The View laid into Dancing With The Stars for this casting choice.
Goldberg Sounds Off
After acknowledging that Dancing With The Stars andThe View both air on ABC by saying that “we gotta support the network,” Goldberg let it be known that she isn’t a fan of Delvey competing on this reality show.
Goldberg is particularly disturbed by reports that Delvey, 33, was given clearance by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to compete on the reality dance competition amid her house arrest. Indeed, Delvey is set to appear on the show wearing an ankle monitor.
Suffice to say, that’s not normally what happens to people on a “bracelet.”
“I think back to all the families who’ve had family members arrested by ICE, who have gone to the courts to get their dad or their mother or their brother back,” she said. “And this woman, they gave her permission to go do this. Now, should I think there’s a reason. Is there a two-tiered system here with ICE?”
Backstory: ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Season 33 Cast Is Out – Here’s Who’s On It
Delvey’s History
Delvey, whose real name is Anna Sorkin, was arrested back in 2017 after posing as a wealthy German heiress in New York City. She used her social standing to defraud wealthy people, banks, and hotels.
In 2019, Delvey was convicted of grand larceny in the first, second, and third degree. She was also convicted of theft of services. Delvey was sentenced to four to 12 years in prison. However, she was released early in February of 2021 for good behavior behind bars.
However, Delvey was quickly taken into custody by ICE for violating the terms of her visa. She’s spent the past two years living on house arrest in New York City while she fights her deportation case.
Goldberg’s The View co-host Sunny Hostin questioned “what’s the consequence” for the crimes that she’s committed?
“A bejeweled ankle monitor — a federal bejeweled ankle monitor — and then a spot on a television show?” she asked.
“I’m here for a redemption arc, and not a rehabilitation arc: somebody who has owned and taken responsibility for what they did wrong,” co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin chimed in to point out. “I’m not convinced this person has. Con artists tend to remain con artists.”
Check out a new interview with Delvey about her Dancing With The Stars casting below.
Goldberg Doubles Down
“She still owes people money,” Goldberg lamented. “I don’t understand why she gets to stay!”
Goldberg became more livid when her co-host Joy Behar suggested that Delvey had been cast because she is “pretty.”
“Well that’s a little bit of a piss-off, I have got to tell you,” Goldberg fired back. “You know, I like pretty people too, but I gotta say, I’m listening to people […] about what’s going on at the border and I’m listening to people […] about who shouldn’t be here — well what the hell, man? How does this work?”
“This is an […] you in the face of a lot of people who have been trying to make their way back to this country and families torn apart,” she continued.
Check out Goldberg’s full comments on this in the video below.
Delvey Responds To Potential Backlash
Delvey, however, claims to not be worried about the potential backlash that she’ll face during her time on Dancing With The Stars.
“It’s just not that serious,” she said. “If someone is that upset about casting on a dancing show, I don’t know what to tell them.”
Delvey also told The Hollywood Reporter that she’s not worried about her ankle monitor hindering her performance.
“In what way would it affect my performance?” she said. “It’s actually pretty light.”
Meanwhile, Delvey will be competing on Dancing With The Stars against the following celebrities: Stephen Nedoroscik, Ilona Maher, Tori Spelling, Anna Delvey, Joey Graziadei, Phaedra Parks, Chandler Kinney, Dwight Howard, Eric Roberts, Brooks Nader, Jenn Tran, and Danny Amendola.
Delvey’s casting on Dancing With The Stars may be controversial, but it is certainly getting people talking. In the end, perhaps that was the goal all along.
Be sure to tune in to the Dancing With The Stars season 33 premiere on ABC and Disney+ at 8pm EST on September 17!
More About:Celebrity News