DWTS Fifth Judge: Julia Fox Surprise, Anna Delvey Flop -- Plus, Shocking Second Elimination

As Oscars Night takes over the Dancing with the Stars ballroom, convicted fraudster Anna Delvey fails to recover from a shockingly unsupportive response from the studio audience and is one of the first two eliminated.

With a double-elimination looming, the pressure was on for everyone competing on Dancing with the Stars. Almost everyone rose to the occasion, too, though that didn't stop the night from ending with the first big shocking elimination of the season.

The biggest talk coming out of last week's premiere was everything to do with convicted con artist Anna Delvey, from why she's on the show at all to what even is going on with her. Anna seems completely disconnected from this whole experience, but that's also how she's appeared in interviews and pretty much everywhere you see her.

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Producers clearly saw that she wasn't going to endear herself to anyone on her own, so they brought in someone who knows all about weathering the press in Julia Fox. The actress and fashionista did more talking than Anna did in her rehearsal package. But could any of it stop what seems inevitable, or would viewers perhaps hate-vote to keep Anna's journey alive? Long story short, nope.

With an Oscars theme for the night, the stars got to wax poetic about their connections to the movies as we saw some of the most iconic music from those soundtracks bring their latest dances to life. While last week's highlight for us was Dwight Howard and Daniella Karagach's height disparity, we think Ilona Maher and Alan Bersten's tandem lifts was our surprise highlight this week.

These athletes are really charming their ways into our hearts. But that doesn't mean their safe from being judged!

Fair warning, since I'm safe at home, I'm probably going to be a little harsher than my colleagues Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough, and Bruno Tonioli. But I might be nicer, too. Maybe.

OSCARS NIGHT

Jenn Tran & Sasha Farber

(Tango - "A Little Party Never Killed Nobody (All We Got)," Fergie, Q-Tip & GoonRock) [from The Great Gatsby]) We don't need a little hop to telegraph that you've gotten back into hold, but that was just one piece of her overall franticness. She looked like she wasn't yet on her mark when the camera hit her and the music started, which could be because we later learned the music wasn't hitting the floor the way it was needed so they could hear. That droopy elbow from rehearsal cropped up (or should we say down) from time to time, too. It was a little over-energized, but there were also solid bits to work on.

Judges Scores: 6, 6, 7

My Score: 6

Eric Roberts & Britt Stewart

(Waltz - "The Godfather Waltz," Nino Rota & Carlo Savina [from The Godfather]) Eric doesn't even have the stance and presence when he stands there like a dancer. He should be presenting something even in that position, and he's just kind of there. It's all very stiff, with arms alternating from some grace to being flung bout as he lumbers into various positions. He can recall the steps and what he's supposed to be doing, with some assists from Britt along the way, but he does so with zero finesse. Her grace only exacerbates his awkward stiffness, which never loosened up, though Carrie Ann suggested chronic pain is a factor there. At least he's out there doing, he's just not doing nearly enough.

Judges Scores: 6, 4, 5

My Score: 3

Danny Amendola & Witney Carson

(Jive - "Danger Zone," Kenny Loggins [from Top Gun]) Props to Danny for really coming out here and putting himself into this dance. He really surprised us with just how much hop and bounce we were getting out of him on the straight jive portions. The kicks and flicks could use a little more follow-through, and his arms need to dance with those legs, but we could see the effort and the style coming through. He seemed more comfortable out there -- don't look at the camera, though -- and confident in what he's capable of. If he keeps up this level of effort and commitment, he could become a dark horse.

Judges Scores: 7, 7, 7

My Score: 6

Anna Delvey & Ezra Sosa

(Quickstep - "Suddenly I See," KT Tunstall [from The Devil Wears Prada]) Julia Fox dropped by for a pick-me-up, telling Ezra, "When you're young, you might do some things that you're ashamed of later, but it all happened to you so publicly, so it's only right that we now get to see your moment." She then said to the camera that all the people being nasty would be "all for a second chance" if this were their daughter, sister, or mother." DWTS is doing everything they can to try and get audiences to embrace Anna -- except let Anna win anyone over with her own personality. Julia dominated the rehearsal package, calling Anna's "tough exterior … a defense mechanism."

Her reluctance to engage as part of the dance's story was a smart move on Ezra's part, as it protected her lack of engagement for a bit. Once they got into the dance, she did a good job of keeping up with the frantic pace. We still don't see quite as much commitment as we need, but this is a dance you applaud just getting through mostly on time. Anna's biggest enemy is her own unwillingness -- or inability -- to take down her walls and show some genuine feeling or emotion out there. It's all so calculated, which looks like holding back in an art form built from feeling. Even Derek noted it, saying he started to see "person" over "persona" just a bit. But just a bit. Even getting her scores was a lesson in stone with zero reaction.

Judges Scores: 6, 5, 6

My Score: 5

Chandler Kinney & Brandon Armstrong

(Rumba - "What Was I Made For?" Billie Eilish [from Barbie]) Due to how strong they came out last week, Chandler was nervous to live up to her own standards this week. The swivel of the hips was a new area for her, but we saw them. We also saw incredible lines throughout. She just moves like a dancer, with a fluid connection from one limb to the next that she makes look effortless. Insert any style into that natural grace makes it easier to overlook the little missteps that were still there. Her coming after Anna is the difference between emotional connection and none at all.

Judges Scores: 8, 8, 8

My Score: 8

Reginald VelJohnson & Emma Slater

(Paso doble - "Ode to Joy," Ludwig van Beethoven [from Die Hard) Reginald talked about how hard movement has become for him, which he didn't fully realize until last week's show. With a number tapping into his first major film role, he also dedicated this week's performance to Bruce Willis, adding, "If you think I'm going out on double elimination, then, 'Yippee-ki yay motherf--ker!'" Unfortunately, other than being endearing, he still gave the least possible in this performance, with a minimal of actual footwork, and mostly just standing stiff and occasionally throwing an arm artlessly out and then retracting it. Whether it's for health reasons or not, he doesn't seem capable of performing anywhere near the level of expectations for this show.

Judges Scores: 6, 4, 5

My Score: 2

Stephen Nedoroscik & Rylee Arnold

(Paso doble - "Superman (Main Theme)," The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra [from Superman]) Well, Stephen definitely approached this like a world-class athlete. The steps were strong and powerful. In fact, everything was strong -- perhaps a bit too strong, in fact. There was no gentleness or finesse or musicality. It was what you might expect from a male gymnast (so…), but he needs to learn to rein in that unbridled power of his sport and put in the gentle character and artistry of dance. It is athletic, but it's also artistic. He's proving his body can learn the routine and deliver it, so he needs to work on carriage, hold, and most importantly, grace. It should look fluid and effortless. As we were watching it, it looked like he was giving a 15 out of 10 but we really just want the 10 -- it holds better.

Judges Scores: 8, 7, 7

My Score: 6

Joey Graziadei & Jenna Johnson

(Rumba - "Shallow," Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper [from A Star Is Born]) Joey doesn't let his emotions out, if he can help it, publicly and he said he was struggling to act the passion of the dance. So bring in Jenna's husband, Val Chmerkovskiy to show him how it's done (and how it's okay to do it, too). For all the haters out there who triggered a response from Joey's fiancee Kelsey, you're just showing your own ignorance. Dance is like TV and movies. It's an artform so the passion is a performance. If you can't handle that, then that's on you.

There was a bit of a pause before that final pose was hit, but we give props to Joey for really embracing the sensuality of the dance, understanding that it is a performance, and giving us his all. He has some very strong lines -- though Derek was right to call out that plastered secondary hand on the abs -- in this number that tell us there's an impressive dancer in there. He needs to continue working on tapping into his emotions and letting them out, as well as finalizing the moves. But he's moving in a surprisingly strong direction early.

Judges Scores: 8, 7, 7

My Score: 7

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Phaedra Parks & Val Chmerkovskiy

(Foxtrot - "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going," Jennifer Holliday [from Dreamgirls]) There are pieces coming together that are really exciting to see. Phaedra has some lovely linework, some real delicacy in her movements that lends itself well to these more intimate styles. She and Val's partnership is already bearing fruit. At the same time, you can see her working to keep all the steps straight when the dance gets into it for a stretch. There were some stutter-steps and uncertain moments of pause that yanked us out of the otherwise very elegant choreography.

Judges Scores: 7, 7, 7

My Score: 6

Tori Spelling & Pasha Pashkov

(Rumba - "This Is Me," Keala Settle & The Greatest Showman Ensemble [from The Greatest Showman]) A song that Tori and her kids have embraced as an anthem from their favorite movie, Pasha wanted her to channel that passion into the dance. She was certainly feeling it, but we weren't quite feeling this dance -- or at least Tori's role in it. She was such a prop for Pasha, doing more not-quite-lift stunts than any actual rumba moves. When Tori does move, she's very stiff and uncertain, even stumbling into place between moves. There was no artistry or finesse in this piece and it felt like a step back from last week's debut.

Judges Scores: 7, 6, 6

My Score: 4

Dwight Howard & Daniella Karagach

(Foxtrot - "City of Stars," Ryan Gosling & Emma Stone [from La La Land]) Having to dance in hold immediately showcased the massive height difference that they played with so effectively last week. What we appreciated seeing in this dance was Dwight not making himself smaller for Daniella, but rather embodying the entirety of his size and strength. There was some beautiful linework from him, lovely extensions, and even some graceful footwork in their modified hold (which was quite clever). This partnership is really something to watch. Yes, he tried to come in a measure early at the start, but once they were together, they were making more magic.

Judges Scores: 8, 7, 7

My Score: 7

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Brooks Nader & Gleb Savchenko

(Quickstep - "9 to 5," Dolly Parton [from 9 to 5]) These two are definitely leaning into relationship rumors, so the chemistry had better come through. The biggest surprise for us, though, was just how much that connection led to a much stronger performance. Easily the most improved of all the stars from last week, we saw hold, we saw footwork, we saw her love of the craft shining through -- and at times perhaps throwing her off. But mostly, we saw a great sense of performance from Brooks throughout this playful piece that bodes well for her future. Also, we kind of loved Derek calling out Gleb's tango hold from last week into this week's quickstep.

Judges Scores: 7, 6, 7

My Score: 6

Ilona Maher & Alan Bersten

(Salsa - "(I've Had) The Time of My Life," Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes [from Dirty Dancing]) We love how they're playing with Ilona's strength in these performances; they elicited an out-loud laugh from us with the first time she lifted him. This partnership is turning into a great deal of fun, and they definitely captured that rom-com vibe they were looking for. On top of that, Ilona has a natural rhythm and grace that comes through the strength that she's finding a bit more each week.

Judges Scores: 7, 7, 7

My Score: 5

RESULTS

Last week, we predicted that Brooks and Reginald would go home, suspecting Eric might have the support to stay and curiosity would be enough to save Anna for at least another week. We didn't anticipate the level of negativity that would dominate the conversation about the show last week surrounding Anna, and she didn't do much to change that in the interim.

This week's efforts to include Julia Fox in her package seemed like production's way to acknowledge a problem and hope to curb it, but we came into these results thinking we probably got it wrong. We might have gotten it wrong on both counts, too.

After seeing what happened these first two weeks, it did feel like Anna just wasn't doing enough to endear herself to anyone at home. At the same time, we started to think that maybe Reginald was more lovable than Eric, overall, with viewers. Dedicating this dance to his Die Hard costar Bruce Willis was also pretty savvy (though likely also sincere). He might just be a more beloved star, and in a world where both of them are objectively terrible dancers, that might be enough.

Sent to safety first were Danny & Witney, Chandler & Brandon, and Eric & Britt … so we're wrong yet again. Hey, y'all, this predicting stuff is wrong. Or maybe we were just right the first time with our concerns Reginald would be going home.

Those three couples were followed by Joey & Jenna, Ilona & Alan, Dwight & Daniella, Jenn & Sasha, and Brooks & Gleb, though some credit to that might go to their steamy chemistry. DWTS fans love even the fantasy and hopes of a showmance. Look how far Rylee Arnold went with Harry Jowsey last season, even though he was meh at best. Brooks is at least a stronger dancer, already.

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The good news continued for Stephen & Rylee, and Phaedra & Val. That left Reginald & Emma, Tori & Pasha, and Anna & Ezra. They make up three of the bottom four, with Eric & Britt at the very bottom, but already safe.

Of these stars, surely Tori Spelling had the most support? Even though Die Hard and Family Matters are beloved properties, Beverly Hills, 90210 is at least as huge, and Tori's personal story has dominated headlines these past few years, with her gaining a lot of sympathy and support (and haters) for her journey.

In the end, it was good news for Reginald, which is already a huge surprise for us. We really thought Tori would have more support on her journey, even though she took a huge step backward this week with her performance. That means the Bottom 2 dancers (based on judges' scores) both survived … but they're going to have a lot of hard work to do to keep that going as neither of them have delivered much in the way of actual dance yet.

Tori lamented her early departure with a message for her kids that they can do anything. As for Anna, when asked what she'll take away from her experience, she deadpanned, "Nothing." And that was it. The mask stays firmly on. Was it meant as a joke -- like she's not going to steal anything -- or is her entire existence performance art? We'll probably never know.

Dancing with the Stars skips next week for the Vice-Presidential Debate (though it looks like it might be business as usual behind the scenes). The show returns the following week with a two-night event. Monday, October 7 will be Soul Train Night, followed by a live episode on Tuesday for a hair metal-themed night, both at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and Disney+.