ABC Reality TV Host Responds to Claims That the Show Is ‘Rigged’

Dancing With the Stars host Alfonso Ribeiro is speaking out after a former contestant claimed the hit ABC reality show is predetermined.

Alexa PenaVega, who competed on Season 21 alongside dance pro Mark Ballas, recently discussed her ballroom experience on her and her husband Carlos PenaVega’s joint LexLos podcast. She claimed fellow Season 21 contestant Hayes Grier questioned whether the show was “rigged.”

“I think the show is rigged,” Alexa recalled Grier saying. She also said Grier believed he got more votes than anyone else because of his strong social media following.

That part of the discussion appeared in a clip posted on the couple’s TikTok account for their podcast.

In his response to the “rigged” comments, Ribeiro commented, “No chance. We want everyone who’s popular to stay on. It’s basic logic.”

Alexa and Carlos, who also appeared on Season 21, responded, “he clip picks up mid story😂 and then goes back to the top. Watch the whole clip and episode. I’m telling a story about sweet Hayes.”

In the full discussion, Alexa shared that she agreed with Grier that more people voted for him. However, she also pointed out that the audience votes are only one part of the show’s decision-making process.

“I think the votes matter. I do, but the show is also produced,” Alexa further shared, noting that the judges’ scores and producers’ decisions were also key factors in who continued on with the competition.

Alexa also pointed out that Season 21 winner Bindi Irwin gained a lot of popularity through her storyline. “Bindi’s story, it’s top-notch,” she said. “How do you beat that?”

During the discussion, Alexa also spoke about competing against Carlos on the show. “I would have had so much on the show if it were not for Carlos,” she admitted, noting that her husband was super competitive while on the show.

Carlos admitted that he was “just a little jealous” of Alexa’s partner, to which she replied, “Very jealous, and he was doing the show with me. It wasn’t like he didn’t understand.”

The couple had just got married when they appeared on the show together. “We were freshly married. I couldn’t imagine sending her off every day to dance and do rumba with these guys,” Carlos justified.

However, Carlos said he was grateful he and Alexa could compete on the show together, adding that he wasn’t sure he could handle the experience otherwise.

“You couldn’t handle it, and we did it together,” Alexa jokingly added.