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Sharna Burgess openly weighing in on the discussion of judges’ scores Dancing With The Stars.
Burgess, 41, hosted the “Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast with her season 35 partner, Tyler Cameronon Tuesday, October 20, prior to Dedication Night. When Cameron, 33, asked if the DWTS judges are tougher on certain contestants, Burgess shared her honest opinion.
“I think our fans would say yes,” she said. “And I feel like our judges say they’re trying to make a fair judgment across the board.”
Burgess pointed out that she has experience judging the Australian version of the show and acknowledged that “there are just contestants that you look at differently.”
“For example, I would look at it Harry [Shum Jr.] in a different way,” she explained, referring to Cameron’s season 35 contestant, who has an extensive dance background.
For someone with no dance experience, such as her own partner, Burgess said the goal is to “improve” from week to week.
“I want to see you do the routine, but I have a higher level of expectation of execution from someone who has dance experience,” she explained. “And I know that makes it very difficult when you only have 10 points to judge. … So it’s not a perfect system.
Burgess noted that some aspects of judging are more “subjective,” such as feeling connected to the dancers’ emotions or simply enjoying the choreography. On the other hand, the judges must also look out for time, clean lines and techniques.
In recent seasons, fans have been more vocal about disagreeing with the judges’ scores for certain routines. During the podcast conversation, Cameron’s girlfriend, Tate Maddenin to remove a popular response from online viewers.
Jenna Johnson and Val Chmerkovskiy are the latest Dancing With the Stars winners to weigh in on the conversation about this season’s shockingly low scores. “I think it’s just because it’s such a talented team that people are hungry for higher scores,” Johnson, 32, told Us exclusively while discussing her and Chmerkovskiy’s partnership with […]
“I think people get really confused in the comments when they say, ‘Oh, Harry got an 8 and Tyler got an 8,'” she said. “I’m always like, ‘Well, they’re different 8s.'”
Burgess reiterated that the DWTS judges only have 30 points to work with. “It’s hard to criticize what the judges put out there, because you decide in a minute … and you do your best to give the score that you feel is right,” she said. “It’s a tough gig.”
This week, Cameron and Burgess perform a new twist to “Supermarket Flowers” with Ed Sheeran in honor of mothers everywhere. Madden, who got engaged to Cameron in August, will join them in the ballroom. (Cameron’s own mother, Andrewhe died in 2020 after a brain aneurysm.)
“This is my biggest one,” Cameron said Tuesday, thanking fans for their support along the way. “I’m just, very grateful.”
Dancing With The Stars On Tuesdays on ABC and Disney+ at 8pm ET.
