The secrets of the ballroom Dancing With the StarsIt was launched in 2005 and has employed celebrities and entertained audiences ever since.
ABC’s competition series pairs professional and amateur dancers. Casting producer Deena Katz revealed that production “100 percent” decides the couples.
“There are some celebs that have wishes, and we always say we can’t guarantee it. That’s why we meet all the celebrities and know all the dancers because some celebs think they know better,” she told Glamour2015 “We are never ever going to try to pair people that we think won’t get along. We always want the best pairing because we know them so well.”
While some duos work well and form friendships, or romances, others end up in conflict. Maksim Chmerkovskiy Hope Solo, for example, didn’t click on season 13 of the show.
“She’s just a s—ty person,” Chmerkovskiy said on the “Allegedly With Theo Von & Matthew Cole Weiss” podcast in 2015, two years after they competed together. “People can be bad or good or whatever. You can have a s—ty life growing up. You can have a difficult upbringing. You can have a rich history. You can have everything. But, if your only sin is being a bad person, then you know what I mean. There’s no excuse for that.”
Katz explained to Slate that drama is often fueled by the act of dancing.
“Sure, people get frustrated. They don’t fight with each other. They are just angry they aren’t learning their quickstep,” she said.
Regardless of any tension, the show must go on — and must remain live.
“On live TV, there’s no second chances,” producer Joe SungkurBusiness Insider 2018 interview. “There’s a total state of excitement, adrenaline is always running throughout veins throughout the show. Some of the most exciting things that happen are the ones you can’t predict and so we’re always looking to those special moments that people will be talking about the next day. We love the few hours of live TV that we get to do. We love it and thrive off it. That atmosphere is why we keep going.”
For all the rules, scroll down DWTS:
