Jesse Metcalfe Speaks Out on His ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Elimination
Don’t Miss All the Twists and Turns!
For exclusive news and updates, subscribe to our Dancing With the Stars Newsletter:
The judges’ jobs are getting more difficult on Dancing With the Stars as the season progresses. Tasked with sending home either ex-pro football player Vernon Davis and Peta Murgatroyd or Jesse Metcalfe (Dallas, Martha’s Vineyard Mysteries) and Sharna Burgess, the judges opted to save the former.
After the show, Metcalfe and Burgess spoke with TV Insider and a small group of reporters, sharing their reaction to leaving the show, their plans for the future (including more of Hallmark’s Martha’s Vineyard Mysteries for the former), and whether or not they’ll return for a final twirl on the dance floor in the DWTS Season 29 finale.
“I loved the challenge,” Metcalfe said shortly after his elimination. “I really did. I knew dance was going to be difficult for me with [having] zero dance experience and the state of my body at 41 years of age. I knew there would be challenges, but I’m glad I made it as far as I did.”
Being voted off the show was disappointing because both Metcalfe and Burgess felt they had more in them. “We had so much more to give and we were improving every week,” Burgess lamented. “We didn’t have our best version of our dance [on Monday]. Unfortunately, it’s just happened this way for us. There were so many good things coming up. I’m sad!”
(ABC/Eric McCandless)
Metcalfe concurred that his time on the reality dance-competition series was definitely cut short. “Tonight, wasn’t one of my best dances,” he admitted, “but I’m proud of what I accomplished. At the same time, I don’t think the right choice was made, I’ll be honest with you.”
The actor had finished three of eight contracted Martha’s Vineyard Mysteries for Hallmark Movies and Mysteries — in which he plays retired detective Jeff Jackson — when he began rehearsals for DWTS. Now that his quest for the Mirrorball trophy has come to an end, he suspects he’ll be headed back into production. “I might be getting right back into that,” he said. “It might be something else, but I’ll definitely be working again before the year is out.”
Could there be a role for Burgess in one of his Hallmark movies? “I could probably make that happen,” Metcalfe responded with a grin.
The actor was part of the Dallas revival that premiered on TNT in 2012. Does he think that the legendary nighttime soap could be revived again even though series lead Larry Hagman (J.R. Ewing) has died? “Speaking of journeys that were cut short,” Metcalfe said of Dallas’ cancellation. “I thought the show was great. It was getting very respectful ratings… from what I heard there was a changing of the guard at TNT. But I think there were, at least, a couple of more season to go… so, you never know.”
In Dallas’ final season, Metcalfe’s character, Christopher Ewing, blew up in a car courtesy of a bomb planted presumably by Nicolas Treviño, played by DWTS Season 27 contender Juan Pablo Di Pace. Is Christopher really alive? “I would like to believe he is, personally,” the actor responded.
(ABC/Eric McCandless)
Traditionally, ejected couples return for the season finale to do one last dance as anticipation builds over which couple will take home the Mirrorball. Given the COVID-19 pandemic, do Metcalfe or Burgess have any concerns about returning to the ballroom?
“We’ve been super-tight with our safety measures and we’ve been doing an amazing job,” Burgess noted. “I have not heard [about coming back for the finale] and I don’t believe they’ve spoken to Jesse about it. But we do have a two-hour finale show [to fill] when we can’t have group numbers and artists performing [the way we used to]. I would definitely be up for it.”
“I would definitely go out there and [dance again],” Metcalfe said. The actor hopes that his exposure on DWTS leads to a gig performing in a Broadway or off-Broadway show — that is, when Broadway opens up again. “I’ve always wanted to be on stage, but I’ve never done a play,” he shared. “Hopefully, some people saw me out there and thought, ‘Hey, this guy has the potential…’ I’m totally open to that.”
“Hopefully, [Jesse] does get a role on Broadway,” Burgess said. “I know that’s something he’s been hoping for and talking about. So, if that happens, you best believe that I’ll be sitting there in that audience showing him my support.”
Dancing With the Stars, Mondays, 8/7c, ABC
Watchlist Easy access to only the shows you care about — all in one simple place
Alerts Only important notifications — when a show is returning, when it becomes available to stream, and more.
Special Offers Exclusive products we release related to your favorite shows and streaming services