Speaking out. Erin Andrews responded to the backlash she received for her reaction to Hannah Brown and Alan Bersten winning Dancing With the Stars on Monday, November 25.
In the wake of Brown, 24, and Bersten, 25, earning the Mirrorball trophy, some fans pointed out that Andrews, 41, didn’t instantly appear to look enthusiastic amid the Bachelorette alum’s moment of triumph. However, Andrews responded to one Twitter user, in particular, who claimed she “looked less than impressed with the outcome of” season 28.
“Give me a break,” the Dancing With the Stars host tweeted on Monday. “YOU CAN’T WIN IN THIS SITUATION. I’m standing next to the couple that just got second place, [Kel Mitchell and Witney Carson].”
The sportscaster continued, “If I had cheered, you’d be killing me for going against the Kel, Lauren [Alaina], and Ally [Brooke]. Not that serious people!”
After 11 weeks of competition, Brown and Bersten were crowned as the winners of season 28. Mitchell, 48, and Carson, 26, came in second with Brooke, 26, and her partner, Sasha Farber, in third and Alaina, 25, and pro dancer, Gleb Savchenko, in fourth. In last Monday’s episode, James Van Der Beek and his partner, Emma Slater, were eliminated after he revealed that his wife, Kimberly Van Der Beek, suffered a miscarriage.
Bersten congratulated Brown in a sweet Instagram post, where the duo were posing beside the coveted Mirrorball trophy. He praised the Alabama native for being “the best partner,” as she played a part in helping him take home his first-ever win on the long-running series.
“Words can’t describe the feelings I felt last night. WE DID IT,” he wrote on Tuesday, November 26. “You never gave up, you always gave me more than I expected (and I expected a lot) and you really allowed yourself to be vulnerable on that dance floor! You have inspired me, Hannah.”
The So You Think You Can Dance alum noted that “anything is possible,” adding that he wanted to thank Brown for giving him “the best season ever.”
Elaborating on his first win, Bersten told Us Weekly and other reporters on Monday that he “cried like a baby.”
Last month, Brown admitted in a tell-all Instagram post that being in the competition “has been harder” than she expected. “I am busting my ass. I am giving this my all,” she wrote at the time. “It’s my focus and passion right now.”
