Top 10 Shocking Eliminations on Dancing with the Stars
For this list, we'll be looking at the most shocking, surprising, and unbelievable eliminations from “Dancing with the Stars.”
#10: Christina Milian
Christina Milian wasn’t long for “Dancing with the Stars,” although we expected her to be around for much longer than she was! Christina and Mark always scored well, and never dipped below a cumulative 24. In their final week, they danced the cha-cha-cha to Cee Lo Green’s “Forget You” and scored a week high 28, with two 9s and a 10, marking the first 10 of the season. Things were definitely looking up. Until they weren’t, because they were eliminated that same week. A lot of people blamed judge Julianne Hough for her rather surprising critiques, and Mark Ballas was allegedly left “furious” following her judgment.
#9: Nastia Liukin
Everyone expected a lot from gymnast Nastia Liukin, seeing as how she’s an Olympic gold medallist, four-time World Champion, and four-time all-around national champion. She’s highly decorated, which means she can obviously move with the best of them. And compete she did, scoring the highest cumulative score in seven of her and her partners’ twelve dances on the show. This included their final week, the semi-finals, where they scored seven perfect 10s. However, that wasn’t enough to satiate the bloodthirsty viewers, and they were eliminated from the competition. Finishing fourth, Liukin missed out on a medal, which is definitely new to her!
#8: Willow Shields
Willow Shields, who is known for playing Primrose in “The Hunger Games” film series, became the youngest person to compete on “Dancing with the Stars.” At just fourteen years old, Willow was two years younger than Zendaya when she competed in season 16. Perhaps somewhat surprisingly, Willow was a great dancer, and she and Mark received consistently high scores throughout the competition, even earning the highest score of the week for their contemporary, beating Nastia and Derek for the top spot. In their final week, they earned three 9s and one 10, and unanimously won the dance-off against Riker Lynch and Allison Holker. Despite this, they were eliminated in a shocking turn of events.
#7: Brandy Norwood
Despite a slow start, Brandy Norwood really picked up as the season progressed. By week five she was a bonafide threat and began earning consecutive highest cumulative scores. In fact, beginning in week five, she earned the highest score on seven of the competitors’ nine dances. Many people genuinely believed that she could win the season, despite some ferocious competition in Bristol Palin, Kyle Massey, and Jennifer Grey. However, it may have been her paso doble in the semi-finals that sunk her, as she received three 9s, the lowest score of the first round. However, she bounced back nicely with a gorgeous Argentine tango, scoring a perfect 30. Unfortunately, it was too late, and she was voted off, resulting in loud boos from the audience.
#6: Juan Pablo Di Pace
Sometimes an elimination is so bizarre and unpredictable that it even riles the judges. This is one of those instances. Juan Pablo Di Pace was arguably the greatest contestant of season 27, earning the highest score for eight of his eleven dances. His performance in the semifinals was nothing short of spectacular, earning perfect scores for both his Argentine tango and salsa. However, he was sent home in a double elimination, resulting in an outraged reaction from the judges. Tom admitted that it was a shocker, Carrie Ann called the result “wrong,” and Len stated that there was “no justice” in the elimination. Sorry voters, but many think you got it wrong, here.
#5: Simone Biles
Much like Nastia Liukin, Simone Biles is a highly decorated gymnast, a fourteen-time gold medallist in the World Championships and a four-time Olympic gold medal winner. So, yeah, she’s pretty good at this whole “moving” thing. She competed in season 24, where she was partnered with Sasha Farber. Her performance in the semifinals was especially noteworthy, earning eight 10s for her jive and rumba. It was the greatest performance of the night, and no one thought she was going home. Well, she did. It visibly surprised everyone, including the judges and Simone herself, who admitted to “Good Morning America” that she thought the result was a live, Steve Harvey-esque gaffe. It wasn’t. Sorry, Simone. You truly did deserve better.
#4: Zendaya
Zendaya is arguably one of the greatest “Dancing with the Stars” contestants not to come from an athletic background. Granted, she does have some dancing experience, having been a part of a hip hop and hula dance group for three years, but it’s not like she’s a four-time Olympic gold medallist or anything! Zendaya was consistently excellent throughout season 16, but she really came into her own in the final three weeks, earning multiple perfect scores from several dances. She even had the highest cumulative score in the finals with 95, beating out Kellie Pickler by one point. However, it was Kellie who went home with the Trophy. Nothing against Kellie, she was spectacular as well.
#3: Normani
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Ex-Fifth Harmony member Normani competed in season 24, and she was absolutely fantastic. She was paired with Valentin Chmerkovskiy, and the two dominated the competition. They earned the highest score on ten separate dances, and they ended brilliantly with the highest score of night two, earning four 10s for their Argentine tango and Foxtrot fusion. This slightly beat out Rashad and Emma, who earned one 9. And, unlike her two competitors, she had never received the lowest score of the week. Despite David and Lindsay being inferior to Normani and Valentin (no offense David), they beat Normani for second place, and she was stuck with the bronze.
#2: Sabrina Bryan
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Sabrina Bryan is one of the show’s earliest examples of a surprising and unpredictable crash. The Cheetah Girls’ member was paired with Mark Ballas, and the two easily outshone the competition. They had received the highest scores in three of the first four weeks, and even scored a perfect 30 for their week four paso doble, giving them the first 30 of the season. They were the easy frontrunners of the competition, but their week six foxtrot was surprisingly bland, earning a cumulative score of 25. This was enough to send them packing, crushing the expectations of both the viewers and the judges. Oh, what could have been. Before we become shocked again by our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions. Elizabeth Berkley Maria Menounos Willa Ford Mýa Kristin Cavallari
#1: Heather Morris
A lot of people criticized the inclusion of “Glee’s” Heather Morris, as she is a professional dancer with years of experience. To no one’s surprise, Heather proved a competent dancer, and she and Maks scored the first perfect score of season 24, which they did in week six while dancing the rumba to TLC’s “Waterfalls.” In a shocking turn of events, this was the dance that got them eliminated from the competition. It’s entirely possible that she was voted off in spite due to what many perceived as an unfair advantage, however. Scoring the first perfect score of the season simply proved her expected excellence, and the voters had had enough of the predictability. Well, it’s a theory, anyway.
