Whitney Leavitt has candidly admitted why she returned to film The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.
After choosing to walk away during contract negotiations ahead of the Hulu show’s third season, the “villain” of the reality show shockingly returned, claiming that her move to a different town in Utah created distance between her and the group. She also maintained that she never left MomTok, the group of Mormon moms at the center of the reality show.
However, one clip of an episode of season three showed Leavitt speaking to a group of friends, where she revealed the real reason she chose to come back. “I just found out if I came back to film, I can audition for Dancing with the Stars,” she told them.
She further elaborated in a confessional, saying, “After last season, I did decide to step away from the show, but I never quit MomTok. I was always in MomTok, still a part of that group. I just really needed a break, but then I heard from my team Dancing with the Stars was going to cast someone from The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, and that’s a motivator. I'll come back for that.”
The reality show’s producers also had Leavitt address the rumors that she had specific demands to return to SLOMW, including tickets to the Oscars — which she denied — and a role on a scripted series, which she confirmed having asked for.
Following the group’s interviews with long-time DWTS casting director and co-executive producer, Deena Katz, it was announced that Jen Affleck and Leavitt would be joining Season 34 of the ABC competition show.
A few weeks before the DWTS premiere, it was announced on Good Morning America that Affleck would be partnered with a new-to-the-show professional dancer, Jan Ravnik, who is best known for being one of the dancers on Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, while Leavitt was partnered with three-time Mirrorball winner Mark Ballas, who returned to the show after taking the previous two seasons off.
Throughout her time on the show, Leavitt and Ballas have remained near the top — if not claiming the top spot — on the judges’ leaderboard, though many have criticized Leavitt’s previous dance experience. She received a degree in dance from Brigham Young University and previously competed against Witney Carson, a DWTS pro who attended a rival dance studio at the time.
Other fans alleged there was constant favoritism from the judges because of how much they loved Ballas and wanted to see him win again.
The pair is still in the competition and will be dancing to two Prince songs during Tuesday’s semifinals.
New episodes of DWTS air Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and Disney+. They are available to stream the next day on Hulu. Season three of SLOMW is now available to stream on Disney+ and Hulu.
