Oti Mabuse has warned former Strictly Come Dancing star AJ Pritchard that it will be tough to recover from the backlash he faces while competing on Dancing With The Stars: The Next Pro.
Mabuse, a two-time Glitter Ball champion who was part of Strictly from 2016 to 2019, shared her thoughts on TikTok after Pritchard made the final of the American show alongside Adele Zaikman and Selena Hamilton. The programme is led by Strictly judge Shirley Ballas and her son, pro dancer Mark Ballas.
Oti separates skill from the man
In the video, Mabuse acknowledged Pritchard's professional abilities, saying: 'AJ the professional is skilled. AJ, the professional, what he has to deliver on the dance floor cannot be taken away; it cannot be denied. It's a talent. It is a power of his.'
She added: 'If you want someone to teach a celebrity how to dance and get the best out of them and produce incredible numbers week on week, that's who you're going to get.'
However, Mabuse then discussed Pritchard as a person, describing him as 'strong-spoken' and suggesting viewers are seeing him 'really scared' on TV. She said: 'Whatever he's saying is coming from a place of being scared and wanting to be good enough, so he pushes, and he is right to push, but it's the way he pushes, the method, the communication, the words that he's choosing.'
Work culture clash on US show
Mabuse admitted she has 'never been a fan' of Dancing With The Stars, but noted the 'work culture' on the US version is 'completely different' to the UK. She said: 'If you want to survive and cross over from pond to pond, you're going to have to learn the work culture of the place and what makes the people tick.'
She also defended Rylee Arnold, the pro dancer with whom Pritchard was paired for a challenge and whose 'intense' training techniques drew criticism. Mabuse called Arnold 'extremely loved' and popular, saying she has been 'underestimated' by people.
Mabuse concluded: 'It's gonna be tough for him to come back from this,' referring to Pritchard's image, adding that Dancing With The Stars was already 'his second chance'. She said: 'It's gonna be tough for a lot of people to now warm to him if he does win. But will he be the first controversial pro that we've ever had? No. Would he be the first outspoken pro who says things that make people gasp? No.'
Earlier criticism and Pritchard's response
This is not the first time Mabuse has criticised Pritchard. Weeks earlier, she shut down his suggestion that Strictly would be better with more 'British dancers', stating that 'the most popular pros on Strictly have not been British' and naming Aljaž Škorjanec, Janette Manrara, Katya Jones, and Nikita Kuzmin. She said his comments would have 'rubbed a lot of people the wrong way'.
Pritchard has not publicly responded to Mabuse or addressed the backlash. However, he was filmed breaking down to fellow competitor Nina Mayster, opening up about 'stress' and 'exhaustion'. He said: 'I put myself under maybe too much pressure. Because I want to show how much this means to me.'
Pritchard also delayed his wedding to compete on Next Pro, saying he has 'sacrificed so much' since getting engaged last July. He added: 'It's overwhelming when I actually think about the lengths I've gone to. To not achieve what I've given up everything for would just be so disappointing.'
