Dancing with the Stars is a one-of-a-kind show where celebrities are paired with professional dancers and learn new dances each week, with viewers voting for their favorites. It first aired in 2005 with six original couples lasting over 5 weeks; now there are fourteen couples, and it lasts from 10 to 11 weeks. Some celebrities who have been on the show are Zendaya, Billy Ray Cyrus, and Kim Kardashian. As years went by, the show has cultivated a strong fan base that watches every episode and votes every Tuesday night, especially with the rise of social media.
This year was eagerly awaited, with last season becoming so talked about. The professional dancers themselves have gained fans over the years since they compete every season, and the celebrities bring their fans in as viewers as well. So producers naturally try to find the most relevant celebrities they can, and this year they accomplished their goal.
With so many known faces, the competition was bound to be intense, and most contestants are already either dancers, gymnasts, performers, or physically agile. That’s why, when Andy Richter was announced, fans were sure he would be gone within the first couple of weeks, but boy, were they wrong.
In the second week, during a double elimination, Baron Davis and Corey Feldman were the first to go. In the following
weeks, Lauren Jauregui, Hilaria Baldwin, Jen Affleck, Scott Hoying, and Daniella Fishel were eliminated. All the while, Richter continued to dance and had, over time, gained a cult following of viewers. He isn’t the best dancer and isn’t able to do choreography like the other contestants, yet viewers fell in love with his smile and happiness to be on the show. The question is, how has he been able to stay so long, even with lower scores compared to the other contestants? Social Media.
In the early seasons, social media didn’t exist in the form of communication throughout the entire world. Viewers merely voted for who they liked, but now with TikTok and Instagram, viewers post their thoughts and opinions on the episode every Tuesday night. It now controls the show with posts on who to vote for and arguments over who deserves to stay. This season, social media has played a huge role with contestant Alix Earle, a famous influencer on TikTok posted her entire journey through the show and inspired all the other pros to post with their partner to encourage viewers to vote for them. The show has become more of a popularity contest than a competition on whose the better dancer.
Richter’s popularity with voters has created a divide on social media between people who watch the show for the competition and people who watch it for the stars. Week after week, viewers have had to watch star after star with potential be eliminated just so Richter can stay and do the same simple routine every week. It is now the ninth week, and stars like Scot Hoying and Daniella Fishel, who both had the potential to keep growing, were eliminated in place of Richter. The next episode is themed “20th Birthday Party” to celebrate Dancing with the Stars’ 2oth anniversary, and team Richter is planning to vote out Whitney Leavitt, who was a trained dancer in college and has performed the most complicated choreography out of the whole cast. With the way fans have been rallying behind Richter, he may even make it to the finale and steal it from someone who really deserves it.
