Dancing With the Stars judge Carrie Ann Inaba has weighed in on the recent early exit of Anna Delvey, the notorious con artist. Following Delvey’s elimination alongside Tori Spelling during the double eviction in Season 33, Inaba expressed her thoughts on Delvey’s controversial statement about her experience on the show.
After her departure, Delvey, whose real name is Anna Sorokin, was asked by Julianne Hough, one of the show’s hosts, what she learned from her brief time on the competition. Delvey’s response—”Nothing”—elicited a surprised reaction from Inaba, who described it as “dismissive.” Inaba emphasized that Delvey’s attitude overlooked the hard work of her partner and the entire show’s crew.
“It really was a shame,” Inaba told Entertainment Tonight. “Honestly, a little gratitude could have changed the narrative.” Initially, Inaba encouraged viewers to give Delvey a fair chance, but following her swift exit, she pointed out that the audience voted according to their feelings. “Our fans vote for who they want to win—not to eliminate anyone,” she noted.
After her exit, Delvey had a candid moment with a Good Morning America journalist, joking that “getting eliminated” was her favorite part about being on the show. This light-hearted comment drew attention on social media, with DWTS sharing her response and cheekily posting “Anna stays unbothered,” which Delvey herself liked on Instagram.
For context, Delvey’s past is quite infamous; in 2019, she was convicted of swindling various institutions out of a significant amount of money while posing as a wealthy German heiress. After serving nearly four years in prison, she faced immigration issues but was released to house arrest in 2022, which is why she sported an ankle monitor during her time on DWTS.
Delvey’s life story gained widespread attention through the Netflix series Inventing Anna, which dramatized her exploits, adding yet another layer of intrigue to her presence on reality television.