Is ‘Dancing With The Stars’ Biased? Former Celebs Call Out Judge, Pro Performer Relationships

If “Dancing With the Stars” fans ever watched an episode and felt the judges were a little more critical of one pro/celeb partnership than another, they may have actually been on to something, at least according to two former competitors on the series.

During an appearance on “Observed With Lisa Vanderpump,” Lance Bass and Vivia A. Fox joined the reality star to discuss the ABC competition series they had all been a part of at one time or another, and both Fox and Bass indicated that their time on the show involved some negative relationships between their pro partners—Nick Kosovich and Lacey Schwimmer respectively—and the judges’ panel.

As the trio, along with spouses, enjoyed drinks during their time at Vanderpump’s home Villa Rosa, the conversation turned towards their respective times on the show in Seasons 3, 7 and 16, and while they initially joked about the tough workouts they endured while competing, things also quickly turned to what both Fox and Bass felt the judges thought about their pro partners.

“I made it to week four, and I was a sore loser,” Fox said of her time on the show, before divulging that Kosovich was part of the reason they didn’t go further and were “kicked off” the show. “You’ve got to play the game. My partner made too many requests.”

Bass quickly piped up to detail the experience he and Schwimmer had as well, noting that while they did make it to the finale, it was clear all season the judges didn’t like her—and one of them later admitted that to him.

“We were in the same boat. My partner was new, she was the ‘bad girl of ballroom,’ and the judges just hated her,” he said. “And we felt it. I mean we made it to the finale...and we go and have drinks at one of the judges’ houses, and they had a little too much to drink, and one of those judges was like ‘You know, we can’t stand your partner.’ And I’m like, ‘well, why am I working my ass off this weekend?’”

Kosovich never returned to the show after Fox’s season, while Schwimmer last competed on Season 13.

It isn’t the first time the judges have been accused of favoritism, with former “Bad Boy of the Ballroom” Maksim Chmerkovskiy also accusing the judges in the past, stating that they clearly favored Derek Hough, who holds the record for the most Mirrorball wins. He later said in an interview with Us Weekly that he didn’t have an issue with Hough afterward, and stated that at the time, he was saying what people were thinking.

“I don’t have a rivalry with Derek. Derek may have a rivalry with me, but I don’t have one,” he said. “I just literally said everything that everybody else thinks. Listen, I don’t have a problem with Derek. The producers have changed and it’s different now.”

“Dancing With the Stars” has not officially been renewed for a 30th season, though it is expected to be picked up and air in the Fall.