'Dancing With the Stars' host Tom Bergeron disagrees with 'divisive' casting
The show should be a "respite from our exhausting political climate," he said.
"Dancing With the Stars" host Tom Bergeron is not on board with some of this season's casting.
In a statement released via his Twitter account, Bergeron said that he'd suggested to the show's new executive producer that they avoid casting someone with "ANY party affiliations."
Former White House press secretary Sean Spicer, who worked for President Donald Trump for much of 2017, is one of this season's competitors.
"[It] was my hope that 'DWTS,' in its return from an unprecedented year-long hiatus, would be a joyful respite from our exhausting political climate and free of inevitably divisive bookings from ANY party affiliations," he wrote. "It is the prerogative of producers, in partnership with the network, to make whatever decisions they feel are in the best long term interests of the franchise. We can agree to disagree, as we do now, but ultimately it's their call. I'll leave it to them to answer any further questions about those decisions."
"We’ve got a great and diverse cast. We are excited about the season," Andrew Llinares, executive producer of DWTS, said in a statement.
A representative for ABC, which airs the program, did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and neither did Spicer.
The cast of "Dancing With the Stars" was announced Wednesday morning on "Good Morning America." In addition to Spicer, those competing are former Bachelorette Hannah Brown; "Queer Eye" star Karamo Brown; former NBA player Lamar Odom; actor James Van Der Beek; supermodel Christie Brinkley; country superstar Lauren Alaina; former Fifth Harmony member Ally Brooke; former NFL star Ray Lewis; actress Kate Flannery; comedian Kel Mitchell; and The Supremes music legend Mary Wilson.
Returning pros include Valentin Chmerkovskiy; Sasha Farber; Alan Bersten; Brandon Armstrong; Gleb Savchenko; Keo Motsepe; Witney Carson; Peta Murgatroyd; Lindsay Arnold; Jenna Johnson; Emma Slater; and Cheryl Burke.
Daniella Karagach and Pasha Pashkov are newcomers to the team.
Official partner pairings will not be announced until the show's Sept. 16 premiere.
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