Cheryl Burke Criticized by ‘DWTS’ Contestant’s Stepmom Over Halloween Night Scoring

Paige Strout October 30, 2025, 10:27 am

Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough, Cheryl Burke, and Bruno Tonioli on Season 34, Episode 7, of ABC's 'Dancing With the Stars,' October 28, 2025. — Disney/Christopher Willard

What To Know

Cheryl Burke returned as a guest judge on Dancing With the Stars‘ Halloween Night.
Alix Earle’s stepmother, Ashley Dupré, criticized Burke’s scoring and appearance in a TikTok video.
Despite the scoring, Earle and Chmerkovskiy finished the night at the top of the leaderboard with a total of 43/45 points.

Cheryl Burke‘s Dancing With the Stars Halloween Night scoring sparked a surprising reaction from one of the contestant’s family members.

Burke returned to the DWTS ballroom as a guest judge on the show’s Tuesday, October 28, episode, earning mixed feedback from fans about her critiques. One person upset by her scoring during the episode was Alix Earle‘s stepmother, Ashley Dupré.

Earle and her pro partner, Val Chmerkovskiy, wowed the judges with their spooky tango to “Bury a Friend” by Billie Eilish. “The tango is full of passion, fire, and you did all of it, girl! You really are amazing,” Burke told the pair before offering some slight criticism.

“I hate that you broke hold. I don’t love that. We have rules in tango, and it’s international standard, as far as I’m aware, and you don’t break hold,” Burke stated. “But other than that, I want you to know that you really are amazing, and I want you to believe in yourself. I hope you do.”

While Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough, and Bruno Tonioli awarded Earle and Chmerkovskiy with 10s, Burke gave the couple a nine.

@ashley.earle INSANE!!!! So proud of you!!!! @Alix Earle @Val ♬ original sound – Ashley Earle

Dupré shared her reaction to Earle’s latest DWTS performance via TikTok, cheering when she got 10s from the judges. When Burke held up her No. 9 paddle, Dupré stated, “Oh, go take more Ozempic.”

“Go take more Ozempic?” one of her children asked, to which Dupré replied, “What? She looks weird. Doesn’t even look like her.”

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Fans reacted to Dupré’s comment underneath the TikTok post. “‘Go take more ozempic’ IM DEADDDDD AHAHAHAHAHA,” one person wrote, while another added, “Go take more ozempic IM CRYINGG.”

“Girl I like you but that Ozempic comment was so out of line,” someone else shared. A different user commented, “If you want to critique her judging, do it with actual arguments instead of body shaming. Incredibly low coming from you.”

“That ozempic comment was so unnecessary and I’m disappointed everyone in this comment section acting like it’s a slay,” another user wrote. “I also thought Cheryl should’ve given Alix a 10 but why are we making fun of her appearance.”

Burke previously denied taking weight loss medication in an August interview with Us Weekly. “There’s just no way, I faint at the sight of needles. And I’ve heard of side effects, people not feeling well, certain things that happen that are too gross to share. I’m not willing to feel like that,” she shared. “I changed my eating habits. I stopped eating past 7 p.m. and it changed my whole body. It wasn’t so much about a number on the scale as it was about how I feel.”

Cheryl Burke, Bruno Tonioli, Alix Earle, and Val Chmerkovskiy on Season 34, Episode 7, of ABC's 'Dancing With the Stars,' October 28, 2025.

Disney/Christopher Willard

Despite not earning a perfect score, Earle and Chmerkovskiy ended the night at the top of the leaderboard with a total score of 43/45 (with Dance Monster-thon bonus points added in).

Dancing With the Stars, Season 34, Tuesdays, 8/7c, ABC and Disney+ (Streaming Next Day on Hulu)

For a more extended celebration of two decades of Dancing With the Stars, from exclusive interviews to retrospectives and must-see photos, pick up a copy of TV Guide Magazine’s Dancing With the Stars 20th Anniversary special issue, available for purchase online at DWTS.TVGM2025.com and on newsstands now.