Lance Bass, Vivica A. Fox Claim 'DWTS' Judges Didn't Like Some Pros

'Dancing With the Stars' alums Lance Bass and Vivica A. Fox bonded over their experiences with the competition's judges — get the details

Trouble in the ballroom? Lance Bass and Vivica A. Fox dished on the highs and lows of competing on Dancing With the Stars — and didn’t hold back about their feelings toward the judges.

During the premiere episode of Overserved With Lisa Vanderpump, which aired on Thursday, March 18, the former ‘NSync singer, 41, and Fox, 56, claimed that the panel of experts might not have always been fair in their scoring.

“I made it to week four and I was a sore loser,” the Independence Day actress recalled of her time on season 3 of the ABC competition series with pro partner Nick Kosovich. “You gotta play the game. My partner made too many requests.”

Bass, who was teamed up with Lacey Schwimmer during season 7 of DWTS, had a similar experience. “We were in the same boat,” he said. “My partner was new. She was the bad girl of the ballroom and the judges just hated her. We felt it.”

Dancing With the Stars Alums Lance Bass and Vivica A Fox Claim Judges Were Biased Against Some Pro Dancers — Lance Bass and Vivica A. Fox Sara Jaye Weiss/Shutterstock; Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP/Shutterstock

The Out of Sync author and the So You Think You Can Dance alum, 32, made it to the finals in 2008, but ultimately landed in third place. While fans were clearly impressed with their performances, Bass didn’t feel the same reception from judges Len Goodman, Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba.

“We go have drinks at one of the judges’ houses and they had a little too much to drink and one of those judges was like, ‘You know, we can’t stand your partner?'” the Mississippi native claimed on Thursday. “I was like, ‘Why am I working my ass off then?'”

Vanderpump, 60, took a spin in the DWTS ballroom with pro Gleb Savchenko during season 16 — but didn’t share any of the same concerns as her dinner party guests.

The former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star still looks back fondly on her rehearsals with the Russian dancer, 37, as she revealed on “The Bellas Podcast” in October 2020. “We had a little bit of an emotional affair, in terms of having to connect and hold on to each other, because it’s so scary,” the Bravo star recalled at the time. “I adored him. … When you’re thrown into Dancing With the Stars and suddenly somebody’s right in your face and you’re wrapping your legs around them … That was the best part.”

Though she had fun with her “gorgeous” partner, Vanderpump’s husband of more than 30 years, Ken Todd, wasn’t worried that things would go too far.

“[Gleb] would say, ‘Do these backbends,’ and as you would do the backbends, he would hold your groin against his,” the SUR owner said on the podcast. “And I was thinking, ‘I haven’t had this much fun since my honeymoon!’ [Ken] would be like, ‘I see you. I see what you’re up to.’ He doesn’t put that much importance on me messing about and flirting.”