Fans may still be reeling from Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews‘ dismissal from “Dancing with the Stars” last year, but the OG host was not surprised at all — in fact, he knew it was coming.
“In all candor, the show that I left was not the show that I loved,” Bergeron explained recently on the “Bob Saget’s Here for You” podcast. “So at the end of the season that turned out to be my last season [in 2019], I kind of knew. So I took everything out of my dressing room that I really wanted because I just kind of felt it was kind of obvious that we were kind of butting heads.”
He added: “I wasn’t surprised that that was my last season. So there was no blue period. Actually, I think Erin and I had more fun getting fired than virtually anyone.”
Bergeron, who had hosted “Dancing” since its 2005 and was joined by former contestant Andrews in Season 18 in 2014, said he enjoyed the majority of his 14 years and 28 seasons on the ABC series. But after some personnel changes in recent years, he and producers didn’t see eye to eye on certain things — specifically, the inclusion of political figures. Right after former White House press secretary Sean Spicer was announced as part of the Season 28 cast in August 2019, Bergeron released a statement objecting to the casting and revealing that he had asked producers to keep the show “divisive bookings from ANY party affiliations” so it could be a “joyful respite from our exhausting political climate.”
Speaking to Saget, Bergeron said he was “caught by surprise” by Spicer’s casting and “felt a bit misled” after his conversation with producers. The Emmy winner also clarified that he was against having a political figure from any party on the show and would’ve released the same statement had the show cast someone from the Democratic party. “I didn’t think a political person was an appropriate booking for the show,” he stated.
Bergeron and Andrew were fired in July 2020, and Tyra Banks was announced as the new host the next day. Executive producer Andrew Llinares later said the change was part of a creative overhaul to “evolve” the show.
“They’re entitled to do the show the way they think is best. And so I look back at the time I spent there with really great fondness for the vast majority of it,” Bergeron said. “And also there are people there on the show performing that I still care about, and I want them to have long careers. I want people to still watch it and support them and understand that, sure, it’s different. But, you know, there’s still very talented people who were going to be on your screens.”
PREDICT who will win ‘Dancing with the Stars’
Make your predictions at Gold Derby now. Download our free and easy app for Apple/iPhone devices or Android (Google Play) to compete against legions of other fans plus our experts and editors for best prediction accuracy scores. See our latest prediction champs. Can you top our esteemed leaderboards next? Always remember to keep your predictions updated because they impact our latest racetrack odds, which terrify Hollywood chiefs and stars. Don’t miss the fun. Speak up and share your huffy opinions in our famous forums where 5,000 showbiz leaders lurk every day to track latest awards buzz. Everybody wants to know: What do you think? Who do you predict and why?
