Tyra Banks Calls Out Wrong Couple on ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Elimination Round

Eli Countryman
·2 min read
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Tyra Banks worked quickly to correct a mistake on Monday night’s live airing of “Dancing With the Stars,” after she mistakenly mixed up the bottom two couples in danger of elimination.

As the final pairs of dance partners stood on the stage, Banks announced that Anne Heche and Keo Motsep were in the bottom two with Vernon Davis and Peta Murgatroyd. Moments later, she clarified that Monica Aldama and Val Chmerkovskiy, whom she previously announced as safe, were actually in the bottom two with Heche and Motsep, leaving Davis and Murgatroyd safe.

Aldama and Chmerkovskiy came back on stage to stand across from Heche and Motsep as the other dancers made their hasty exits.

“There has been an error in our control room, but we’re making it happen,” Banks said after correcting the mistake. “This is live TV, right?”

The host went on to apologize for the mishap and explained that the cards given to her were incorrect. Rushed for time, the judges then voted between the correct bottom two couples, electing to save Aldama and Chmerkovskiy and eliminating Heche and Motsep from the competition.

Banks later took to Twitter to comment on the mixup. “Wowzers. Live TV. Wrong name on cards,” she tweeted. “So challenging to deal with moments like these. But we power through.”

An Instagram Live video from Banks also elaborated on the context behind the mistake. In the clip, she mentions that she has been informed it was a “technical difficulty” that left the wrong names on her cards.

“It’s really unfortunate that certain people thought they were safe and they weren’t, and they had to get called back,” she said. “It’s a mess, but it’s my job as the host to keep the show going.”

Watch the video below.

 

More from Variety

Best of Variety

Sign up for Variety’s Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.