Did Len Make the Wrong Choice on ‘DWTS’? Melanie C. & Gleb Savchenko React
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The judges were divided last night on Dancing With the Stars during Episode 6’s “Grease Night” whether to save singer Melanie C. and pro Gleb Savchenko or influencer Olivia Jade and pro Val Chmerkovskiy in the dance competition reality series. So, top judge Len Goodman was given the unenviable task of casting the deciding vote and he chose to keep the latter duo, thus ending the former’s quest for mirror ball glory.
“We’re feeling like [expletive],” Savchenko told a small group of outlets including TV Insider shortly after last night’s live broadcast. “Really disappointed, really gutted,” Melanie C. adds. “We didn’t want to go home at this point.”
Savchenko notes that there were some factors that may have led to him and his Spice Girl partner not receiving as many votes as they performed late in the program and fans didn’t have as much time to vote as they would have if they’d performed earlier. Technically, each of the couples in jeopardy received two votes each from each of the judges – alas, Goodman’s vote carries more weight when a unanimous decision isn’t reached.
“It is what it is,” Savchenko laments. “Everyone [this season] is amazing. Everyone is killing it. I don’t think we’ve ever had a better cast.”
As for Goodman’s decision, Savchenko says, “I love Olivia and Val. Both of them are doing an amazing job. If I had to pick, well, I would have chosen to save us. And they’d say the same [about themselves].”
“Len’s the head judge,” Melanie C. concedes, drying noting of her fellow Brit, “He may not be welcome back in the U.K. though…”
The couple not only left the competition after earning 9’s from all four judges but Melanie C. cut open a figurative vein or two in the pre-dance video package. “I’ve always loved this show,” she says. “I’ve [also] always been fearful of doing a show like this because it can be quite an intrusion on your privacy. Not since the 1990s and having cameras follow [the Spice Girls] around [have I felt like this].”
The singer hastens to add that she also feels proud of herself, too. “Each week, it was really difficult to go out there,” she admits. “I danced to the best of my ability and I’m proud of it.”
While she has no plans to incorporate the dances she learned for the ballroom floor into her musical acts, this experience will influence her shows. “I think I’ll appreciate more going out there as a singer and addressing my audience,” she says. “I get nervous when I sing, but pushing myself to do these dances was another level of anxiety. This experience will make me a better performer in my day job.”
ABC
Savchenko, who says he’s made a “friend for life” and calls Melanie C. “the hardest worker in the room,” will likely participate in opening numbers for the rest of the DWTS season. He’s also pitched to the producers a dance number with himself and three of the other male dance pros.
“I have a great idea I want to do with three boys – I won’t say who – but I’ve put an idea together and I’m just waiting to hear on it,” Savchenko teases. “I want to do this special, special performance with just the guys – this sexy number.”
Savchenko hints this dance involves no shirts and some water. “We do these numbers on tour,” he says. “I really want to do something this season that will have audiences saying, ‘Damn! These guys can really dance!’ I want to dance. I want to create.”
Dancing With the Stars, Mondays, 8/7c, ABC
