Nastia Liukin had a rough week on Dancing With The Stars, and a video of her seemingly showing her temper to Derek Hough was released that is casting her in a nasty light. Hough says she doesn’t deserve it, because the producers were pushing her on purpose.
Hough took to his TV Guide blog to criticize the way his partner was portrayed after edits were done, saying that although he understands how the show works in the sense of creating a narrative–and one that viewers will be eager to tune in for–he was disappointed in how they portrayed Nastia, making it seem as though she was upset with him after a long day of rehearsals.
“I have to say I’m pretty disappointed in the package they showed. I know how the show works and they like to build narratives and everything, but last week was the first time Nastia and I had a chance to bond. The whole season we had been on the go because of our schedules and then my injury threw a curve ball into everything. This past week, because of the injury, we had more time to get to know each other. The first day of rehearsal we had rehearsed so hard, but in the eighth hour of rehearsal, she was tired and the producer was asking her a question that had nothing to do with the show and what we were doing. She was like, “I’m tired.” They kept pushing her because they wanted her to react and she did, and that’s what they played. When they played the package before our dance, we both looked at each other, like, “What was that?!” Hough wrote.
Hough says he and Liukin actually had a wonderful bonding moment during rehearsals and that everything is fine between them. He is currently recovering from an injury and says he’s doing better every day.
Olympic gymnast Nastia has a pretty full plate, so it’s no surprise that she was tired during rehearsals; not only is she in the final days of competition on the show, she’s also been working on finals at NYU and was just named the grand marshal for this year’s Indy 500, which will take place on May 24.
“I have very fond memories of competing and performing in Indianapolis, and I will actually be back again in August for the P&G Gymnastics Championships. I’m really honored to be the Grand Marshal for this year’s Indianapolis 500. It will be so exciting to witness ‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing’ – I can’t wait!” Liukin said.