Current:Home > BackAnna Delvey on 'DWTS' leaves fans, Whoopi Goldberg outraged by the convicted scam artist-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
Anna Delvey on 'DWTS' leaves fans, Whoopi Goldberg outraged by the convicted scam artist
View Date:2024-12-23 17:00:27
Anna Delvey is joining the cast of "Dancing with the Stars." Her partner's over the moon. The internet? Outraged.
The convicted con artist-turned-influencer is igniting backlash after the ABC reality show announced she was joining Season 33 of the dance competition Wednesday on "Good Morning America." In the show's official promo picture, Delvey donned her ankle monitor and she told People magazine she got permission from ICE to compete.
Delvey, who is slated to be paired with first season pro Ezra Sosa, first sparked a stir online in 2018 when her former friend and writer Rachel Williams wrote a viral Vanity Fair piece about the scam operation. Rumors of her alleged "DWTS" casting had surfaced days before the official news, but ABC declines to comment on casting rumors until the "GMA" announcement.
Anna Delvey, Jenn Tran and Tori Spellingjoin cast of on 'Dancing With the Stars'
The show's fans — and "The View" co-host Whoopi Goldberg — weren't happy with the casting choice.
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
Anna Delvey described by ABC as 'scam artist' in 'DWTS' casting announcement
But the "fake heiress," as some refer to her, has courted controversy far before her days in the ballroom.
Delvey, whose real name is Anna Sorokin, was convicted in 2019 of stealing $275,000 from hotels, banks, and upper crust New Yorkers to finance her luxurious lifestyle and burgeoning business plans. She was sentenced to four to 12 years in prison, and served a little more than three years. In fall of 2022, she was detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and has been on home confinement for overstaying her visa. That case is still pending.
Her story became the subject of a buzzy hit Netflix series "Inventing Anna," starring actress Julia Garner, and chronicled how the young Russian woman posing as a German heiress named Anna Delvey conned New York's elite out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
'Inventing Anna' fact check:Did Anna Delvey really steal a jet? And is she still friends with Neff?
In their official "DWTS" casting press release, the show described Delvey as "an artist, fashion icon and infamous NYC socialite who gained international attention after Netflix purchased the rights to her story and developed it into the 2022 miniseries 'Inventing Anna.'"
The press release continued: "Some view her as a cunning scam artist, while others see her as a charismatic and ambitious entrepreneur who took advantage of New York City’s social elite in an effort to open a prestigious art studio. Her case has also sparked discussions about wealth, privilege and social climbing in modern society."
ABC's release does not mention her prison sentence.
Fans divided over 'scam artist' casting on 'Dancing with the Stars'
While Delvey's partner Ezra Sosa told his Instagram followers he was "thrilled" to be competing with the socialite, not every fan necessarily saw eye to eye with the new pro dancer.
One X user wrote: "Anna Delvey joining 'DWTS' Season 33—ankle monitor loud and proud. If she were Black, this would NEVER happen."
"People are complaining about anna delvey being on dancing with the stars bc it’s “glorifying a criminal” but that is the exact genre of person who should be cast for such a program and whoever suggested it deserves an emmy," one said in defense of "DWTS" casting.
Julia Garner on playinga likable sociopath in Shonda Rhimes' new Netflix series 'Inventing Anna'
The comments under the "DWTS" cast introduction on Instagram were flooded with mixed Delvey reviews: "I wonder if Anna can bedazzle her ankle bracelet," while Sosa wrote that he "will be putting rhinestones on the ankle monitor STAT."
Another said: "I don’t understand, this is dancing with the stars not dancing with the felons" while one commenter said "next thing you know, Gypsy Rose (Blanchard) is gonna be twirling around, competing for the mirror ball trophy."
One said that "ppl in the comments clutching their pearls over an ankle monitor. its show biz ppl, live a little."
Whoopi Goldberg slams ICE saying there's a 'two-tiered system'
Social media users weren't the only disappointed ones. Oscar winner Whoopi Goldberg addressed her disappointment with the sister show of "The View," which airs on ABC, the same network as "DWTS."
"We gotta support the network," Goldberg said acknowledging the relationship, but also told viewers that "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 and this woman, they gave her permission to go do this."
She added: "Now, should I think there’s a reason? Is there a two-tiered system here with ICE?"
What was Trump found guilty of?See the 34 business records the jury decided he falsified
But co-host Sara Haines jokingly called out a former president during the daytime talk show's panel discussion.
"We have a felon running for president, why are we surprised?" Haines said, referring to former President Donald Trump who was found guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in a New York hush money trial in May.
"Dancing with the Stars" returns on Sept. 17 at 7 p.m. central time.
Contributing: Kinsey Crowley
veryGood! (5)
Related
- California farmers enjoy pistachio boom, with much of it headed to China
- Salmonella outbreak in 22 states tied to recalled Gills Onions products
- Live updates | Israeli troops briefly enter Gaza as wider ground incursion looms
- Democrats’ divisions on Israel-Hamas war boil over in Michigan as Detroit-area Muslims feel betrayed
- John Krasinski Reveals Wife Emily Blunt's Hilarious Response to His Sexiest Man Alive Title
- Greek army destroys World War II bomb found during excavation for luxury development near Athens
- Why Leslie Fhima Briefly Considered Leaving The Golden Bachelor
- Drake & Josh’s Josh Peck Reveals He Almost Played Edward Cullen in Twilight
- The Daily Money: Mattel's 'Wicked' mistake
- Rachel Zegler Brings Haunting Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes Songs to Life in Teaser
Ranking
- 2 more escaped monkeys recaptured and enjoying peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in South Carolina
- White House wants more than $23 billion from Congress to respond to natural disasters
- Judge says he’ll look at Donald Trump’s comments, reconsider $10,000 fine for gag order violation
- Poland’s president calls for new parliament to hold first session Nov. 13
- UFC 309: Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic fight card, odds, how to watch, date
- Bad sign for sizzling US economy? How recent Treasury yields could spell trouble
- Imprisoned ‘apostle’ of Mexican megachurch La Luz del Mundo charged with federal child pornography
- Starbucks threatened to deny abortion travel benefits for workers seeking to unionize, judge says
Recommendation
-
Martin Scorsese on the saints, faith in filmmaking and what his next movie might be
-
Watch live: Maine mass shooting press conference, officials to give updates
-
'Priscilla' review: Elvis Presley's ex-wife gets a stylish yet superficial movie treatment
-
Book excerpt: Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward
-
Trump is likely to name a loyalist as Pentagon chief after tumultuous first term
-
Escaped Virginia inmate who fled from hospital is recaptured, officials say
-
As world roils, US and China seek to ease strained ties and prepare for possible Biden-Xi summit
-
I-80 reopened and evacuations lifted after windy brush fire west of Reno near California line