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Season 34 of Dancing With the Stars is heating up, and fans can’t get enough of the drama — both on and off the dance floor. With each week bringing new challenges and jaw-dropping performances, viewers have started speculating about favoritism, especially when it comes to professional dancer Mark Ballas and his partner, Whiney Leavitt. After surviving Halloween Night on Tuesday, October 28, Entertainment Tonight caught up with the pair to talk about rumors that the judges might be showing bias. “It’s okay, you know, honestly, the TikTok stuff is kind of new for everyone. I know social media has been around but, honestly, I’m just doing my best here,” Ballas said. Since the season began, fans have flooded their social media pages, claiming the pair receives preferential treatment, especially when it comes to song selections for their routines. Ballas, however, is making it clear that every contestant has equal opportunities. “When it comes to the music stuff, I know there’s questions about edits and things like that. We all have the same opportunities to do that.” He also emphasized his personal expertise in music, explaining, “I’ve also been studying music production for a long time and I’m just very specific about certain songs.” Even so, not everything always goes as planned. Last week, during Wicked Night, Ballas ran into a few unexpected challenges. “There are things that we can’t do … I wanted to wear green and I wanted to paint my face green,” he revealed. “Because of intellectual property and IP Universal said no. So I had to wear pink. Since they said wear pink, I said ‘alright,’ leaning into the pink. Let’s put a pink flower in. You know, you got to lean in.” Despite a few creative bumps along the way, Ballas and Leavitt earned their first 10s of the season for their performance. With the competition now in its seventh week, Ballas is tuning out the online hate. “Honestly, I’m doing my best. I’m having a great time,” he said. “I love all these couples, rooting for everybody. Also, I appreciate the people that are watching the show at home and all these new eyeballs on it. It’s what makes it fun.” Leavitt also defended her partner amid the accusations, praising his dedication. “This man works his a** off. He puts so much thought into every single dance we put on that dance floor.” With only a few weeks remaining, the competition is tighter than ever, and Ballas emphasizes that at this stage, it really is anyone’s game.
