Kelsey Anderson And Val Chmerkovskiy did not agree Carrie Ann Inaba‘s criticism Joey Graziadei And Jenna Johnsonoccur during the Dancing with the stars final.
After the Season 33 winners took the stage in the Freestyle category on Tuesday, November 26, Inaba, 56, told Graziadei, 29, that she wasn’t a fan of the tennis-themed routine. Jamiroquai‘s hit song ‘Canned Heat’.
“I just thought that was a little disappointing,” says the DWTS Judge said. “I found that some of the angles had to be super tight because of the racket, but that just wasn’t right.”
Anderson, 26, who is engaged to the former Bachelorwas the first to show her disagreement, drawing loud boos and giving Inaba’s criticism a thumbs down from where she sat in the finale’s studio audience.
Johnson’s own partner, dude DWTS pro Chmerkovskiy, 38, expressed his frustrations on social media, where he posted some of his own thoughts. ‘Whaaaat did you say his racket swing needed to be tighter? What!?” Chmerkovskiy, who married Johnson, 30, in 2019, captioned a photo of himself looking disheveled and posted it via his Instagram story. “10 weeks of destroying yourself for that?! Unbelievable.”
Inaba’s critique also argued that “the energy just kind of dropped in the middle”, despite telling Graziadei that he was “amazing” and that she had seen talent in him “from the first time” she saw him dance in the ABC series.
Fellow DWTS right Derek Hough and the show’s cohost Julianne Hough also failed to view the routine through Inaba’s critical point of view.
“Joey, my man, come on!” Derek said as he delivered his own judgment. “How dare you, Carrie Ann? Joey, that was phenomenal. And Jenna, your body of work all three seasons, what you produce year after year, is incredible. Joey, that was a fantastic Freestyle.”
As Derek spoke, Anderson was also seen cheering.
Meanwhile, Derek’s sister, Julianne, 36, told the pair they had “absolutely done well”, which was reflected in the judges’ scores for Graziadei and Johnson, who came in with a 9 from Inaba, a 10 from Derek and a 10 by Bruno Tonioli.
Graziadei and Johnson’s big win in the final marked the first time that a Bachelor once took home the show’s Mirrorball Trophy.
Before the final, Derek raved about Graziadei’s dance floor skills. “Joey Graziadei, the showman. Joey is a natural performer,” Derek said earlier in the show. “Versatile, consistent and unparalleled in musicality. Week after week he confidently handles complex choreographies with an impressive range.”
Anderson also shared her own admiration for her fiancé ahead of the finale, taking to TikTok on Monday, November 25, to pay tribute to Graziadei. “Every Tuesday right after his performance, Joey texts me saying, ‘I hope I made you proud,’ which of course he does — but honestly, he makes me proud every day,” she said in the clip. “It’s not just about his performance; it is the way he treats others and the unwavering dedication he brings to everything he does.”