Convicted Felon Claims ABC Used Her to "Drive Up" Ratings

On September 17, Dancing with the Stars kicked off season 33 on ABC, featuring former professional athletes and reality stars learning the ins and outs of ballroom dancing. As with past seasons, fans were not thrilled with all the people who had been cast, and one woman in particular caused a wave of controversy.

Just days before ABC officially announced its full celebrity lineup, it was leaked that Anna Delvey — AKA Anna Sorokin — a convicted felon and con artist, had been cast.

Anna Delvey/Anna Sorokin had shot to infamy in 2018 when an article about her was published in Vanity Fair. The article was written by her former friend Rachel Williams. In the article, Williams described her close relationship with Delvey, who she thought was a German heiress. In the end, Delvey scammed Williams out of thousands of dollars and cost her her job.

But Williams was not the only one duped by Anna Delvey. In 2019, a New York Court convicted the fake heiress of attempted grand larceny, larceny in the second degree, and theft of services. She was sentenced to anywhere between four and twelve years in prison.

However, after just three years behind bars, Ms. Delvey was handed over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as they were planning to deport her since she is not an American citizen.

Despite the backlash, Dancing with the Stars followed through with its casting choice, pairing Delvey with professional dancer Ezra Sosa.

Anna Delvey and Ezra Sosa Dancing with the Stars — Credit: ABC

Even before Dancing with the Stars premiered, Delvey made headlines for her comments about the hit show. She angered fans when she said that winning the coveted Mirrorball Trophy would mean nothing to her and that she would put it in storage.

Well, her unpopularity carried over and Delvey was one of the first dancers eliminated, alongside actress Tori Spelling. And when asked what she would take away from her time on the show, she said, “Nothing.”

Now, after weeks of facing constant heat for her attitude, Ms. Delvey has had enough and is fighting back.

In an email sent to NBC News, Ms. Delvey said that ABC and Dancing with the Stars used her to increase ratings and viewership.

“I feel that the show so obviously used me to drive up the ratings, that they never had any plans to give me any chance to grow and only cared about exploiting me for attention. It was predatory of them to try [to] make me feel inadequate and stupid all while I did get progressively better yet they chose to disregard that.”

“It felt like I was never really given a fair chance by the viewers or some of the judges’ given their nonsensical scoring. It’s supposed to be a dance competition and not a popularity contest.”

Unfortunately for Ms. Delvey, it is a popularity contest of sorts. While the judges — Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, and Derek Hough — do give scores and there are rankings, it is ultimately up to the audience and voters to decide who stays and who goes.

Dancing fans are incredibly dedicated and passionate, and it most likely did not sit well with them that someone who agreed to be on the show treated it in such a cavalier manner.

One person who did stand by Ms. Delvey was her partner, Ezra Sosa. After their elimination, he released a video on Instagram, asking fans to give Delvey “some grace.” He said that, even though she didn’t show it, she did care about the show. He claimed that after their first performance, Delvey went into the bathroom and cried about all the negative comments being directed towards her.

Do you think ABC and Dancing with the Stars used Anna Delvey? Or is she just mad that fans didn’t like her more? Let us know in the comments!