Anna Delvey is trying to reinvent herself. But Delvey, whose legal name is Anna Sorokin and who inspired the hit Netflix miniseries "Inventing Anna," is quickly learning that there's a high cost to the public shaming attached to bad choices. Delvey's arrival on Season 33 of "Dancing with the Stars" comes after she was accused of scheming to finance a lavish lifestyle and her personal business plans, stealing $275,000 from hotels, banks and lavish New Yorkers. She was convicted in 2019 of grand larceny, and served a little more than three years of her four- to 12-year prison sentence. The "DWTS" move to bring Delvey to the ballroom floor has delivered headlines from the start: Delvey having to get US Immigration and Customs Enforcement's permission to compete after the agency detained her in 2021 for overstaying her visa; a now-infamous ankle monitor adorning Delvey during the show; and her "lackluster" dance debut. The casting controversy surrounding the former "fake German heiress" feels familiar and fresh at the same time. And though parts of the internet are upset, her personal reinvention may help renew interest in "DWTS" — and give her a second chance. Delvey headlines a cast full of recognizable names, including "Beverly Hills: 90210" star Tori Spelling, NBA legend Dwight Howard, Oscar nominee Eric Roberts, former Bachelor franchise leads Jenn Tran and Joey Graziadei and Olympic "pommel horse guy" Stephen Nedoroscik. The fervor around Delvey continued on the dance floor during the season premiere. She and first-season pro Ezra Sosa, the final pair to compete, danced a cha cha to Sabrina Carpenter's buzzy song of the summer "Espresso." Judge Derek Hough said he was "lost for words" and "surprised" by Delvey's potential. The ever-energetic panelist Bruno Tonioli shared pithy praise, saying she was "reinventing Anna yet again and it could be working." But Carrie Ann Inaba noted the elephant in the room — a "shift in the energy" during the duo's dance — asking fans "to give this a chance." "I can imagine that this scary for you, and I'm not pro or … against, anything that you've done. But this is about your dancing here," she told Delvey. "I was very nervous going into my first dance, but I think I did well under the circumstances. The room went silent. It was clear I wasn't a fan favorite — yet. But I'm going to keep working at it. And I hope I can win people over with my work effort and perseverance. I'm not giving up," Delvey told USA TODAY in an emailed statement. She continued: "When I finished my first dance, I saw an 'avalanche of hate' on social media. It was devastating and I ran off the stage in tears." In an Instagram post, Sosa echoed Delvey, saying she was found "in the bathroom and she was crying." He said "no one deserves the amount of hate she's getting right now" and she "deserves a second chance." That "avalanche" of public discourse has been clear before and after Delvey's first dance. Former "DWTS" pro Cheryl Burke said on her podcast that Sosa's pairing with "somebody who's a little complex" is "a lot" for the pro, who is new to the show. The New York Times suggested Delvey "may need to show some emotion" after her stoic dance. "The View" apologized on-air after its co-hosts misrepresented the facts of Delvey's case during a Sept. 5 show, incorrectly telling viewers that Delvey owes restitution. Alyssa Farah Griffin told viewers that she "still owes people money, and con artists tend to remain con artists." Whoopi Goldberg noted "the families who've had family members arrested by ICE, who have gone to the courts to get their dad or their mother or their brother back and this woman, they gave her permission to go do this." Responding on X prior to the apology, Delvey wrote: "While you are entitled to your opinions, you should at least get your facts straight. I served my time and paid everyone back in full 3+ years ago. Looking forward to your on-air correction." The backlash continued on social media, especially in the comments under Delvey's pictures and videos on the official "Dancing with the Stars" Instagram page. "I'm mortified for Ezra. He deserves so much better than this," one account said. Another wrote, "Stop glorifying her." A user argued that "anyone wearing an ankle monitor should not be allowed to compete." "Ezra deserved better. The viewers deserved better," someone said. The controversy surrounding Delvey may be creating ratings gold for "Dancing with the Stars." The "DWTS" results aren't in until Tuesday night's first elimination, but the premiere's ratings show a bump over last season after the show returned to ABC this year. According to an ABC press release, the Sept. 17 season premiere was seen by nearly 5 million viewers and topped TV in total viewers and adults 18-49, per Nielsen. That is a 4% increase over last season's premiere in September of last year, which garnered 4.78 million viewers. USA TODAY reached out to reps at ABC for comment. "Dancing With the Stars" has a history of casting controversial contestants, long before Delvey. Ex-Food Network star Paula Deen danced on Season 21 of the show in 2015 after she admitted in a lawsuit deposition that she used racial epithets targeting Black people and tolerated racial jokes in the workplace.  Former figure skater Tonya Harding finished third on Season 26, two seasons after her ex-rival Nancy Kerrigan competed on the show. Harding pleaded guilty to a felony charge of hindering the prosecution after her ex-husband attacked Kerrigan on the knee with a baton, causing injury in the run-up to the 1994 Olympics. She also paid $160,000 in fines and completed over 400 community service hours. 'DWTS' fans decry Adrian Petersoncasting due to NFL star's 2014 child abuse arrest Last season, former Minnesota Vikings star Adrian Peterson danced despite past arrests for child abuse and suspicion of domestic violence, including one incident that allegedly occurred as recently as 2022. In 2014, Peterson, then 29, was indicted on a felony charge for injuring his 4-year-old son while disciplining him with a switch that resulted in cuts all over the boy's body. In 2022, Peterson agreed to domestic violence and alcohol counseling after he was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence following a flight with his wife Ashley, who later called the incident "a private matter." Sean Spicer accused of using racial slurat a heated book signing event Other recent controversial celebrity dancers include Olympian Ryan Lochte, who was accused of lying to Brazilian investigators about being robbed at gunpoint during the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. A USA TODAY Sports investigation at the time found that despite some embellishment, the framework of Lochte's story was true. His charges were later dismissed. Former President Donald Trump-era White House communication director Sean Spicer danced in 2019 which sparked backlash at the time after he was accused of using a racial slur a year earlier at a book event. Delvey is no stranger to controversy either, but she is still a human. Last Tuesday, after Delvey and Sosa danced, they headed up to hear the judge's scores. The duo received an 18 out of 30. Delvey told "DWTS" co-host Julianne Hough she hopes "America will get to see a different side of me." Delvey says she's "not a natural performer," telling USA TODAY the "DWTS" experience is "overwhelming and terrifying." Maybe, as Inaba and Sosa said, she deserves a second chance now. The same one that other celebrities have received. To dance, to reclaim her life, to reinvent herself. "You know what, I'm a fighter, I'm the underdog," Delvey told USA TODAY in her statement. "But I'm going to show people I deserve to be here. I hope they'll give me a chance." As the official bio from "Dancing with the Stars" states, "Her story continues to captivate the public's imagination." Whatever you think of Delvey, maybe we should let her write her own next chapter. ## Delvey's Emotional Backlash Anna Delvey’s “Dancing With the Stars” partner, Ezra Sosa, revealed the “fake heiress” had a hard time dealing with backlash over her casting on the show. In a TikTok video shared Monday, the professional dancer thanked fans for showing him so much “love” after his Week 1 debut — only to reveal that Delvey wasn’t met with the same support. “On my end, I was feeling so much positivity, but on my partner’s end, she wasn’t receiving the same,” Sosa said. “I think the hardest part of my day [was], after our press line, she was reading the comments and then we couldn’t find her,” he continued, while wiping away tears. “They finally found her in the bathroom and she was crying.” Sosa said he had “never seen” Delvey show so much emotion and it “broke [his] heart.” “As her partner, I want to just give her the best experience she could possibly could [have],” he continued. “And knowing that that’s not the case, it really did break my heart. Delvey — born Anna Sorokin — spent time in prison for posing as a fake German heiress and tricking wealth people, banks and businesses out of more than $250,000. Although Sosa admitted what Delvey did was “controversial” and “not right,” he asked fans to give her a “second chance.” “I can never justify that for her or anyone in her life,” he said. “But it is really hard because this person that I am truly falling in love with every single day in rehearsal isn’t the person that everyone sees in the media.” “No one deserves the amount of hate she is getting right now,” he added. Sosa ended the video by praising the convicted fraudster for “stepping up to the plate” and told fans he “cannot wait” for them to see how much she has “improved” for Week 2. Delvey sparked backlash last month after she was announced as one of the contestants on Season 33 of the hit dance competition series, with many fans questioning why ABC was giving a criminal a platform. Delvey — who wore a blinged-out ankle monitor — danced a cha cha to “Espresso” by Sabrina Carpenter during last week’s premiere night. The dance earned her a combined score of 18/30 from the judges. At the end of Delvey’s performance, judge Carrie Ann Inaba addressed the criticism of her casting. She told viewers that although they may not agree with her being on the show, to at least “give her a chance” as she’s working just as hard as fellow competitors in rehearsals each week. Although longtime “DWTS” pro Cheryl Burke “agreed” with Inaba’s comments, she admitted that some people “may have thought it was a little inappropriate” during an exclusive interview with Page Six. ## Delvey's DWTS Casting: A Controversial Move In a bizarre programming move, ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars” has cast fake heiress Anna Delvey, of grand larceny and fraud fame, as one of the contestants this season. Competing against Olympic gold medalist Stephen Nedoroscik (who you can’t tell me isn’t really Clark Kent/Superman), the latest “Bachelorette” Jenn Tran, NBA star Dwight Howard and others, Delvey has the dubious honor of being the only competitor this season who had to obtain permission from the federal government before she was able to travel to Los Angeles to film the show. Her current bond conditions restrict her to travel within only 70 miles of her residence. Delvey, whose real name is Anna Sorokin, was convicted by a jury in 2019 on eight counts of theft: one count of attempted grand larceny, three counts of grand larceny and four counts of theft services. She was acquitted of two counts, including attempting to steal more than $1 million from a bank. Delvey has achieved the kind of viral notoriety reserved for bad-behaving celebrities. Nicknamed the “fake heiress,” she was accused by prosecutors of ripping off friends, strangers and businesses by pretending that she was due to inherit a German megafortune. Her crime spree of stealing, forging and basically grifting for years was made into a hit Netflix series, “Inventing Anna,” created by Shonda Rhimes and starring Julia Garner in the title role. In short, Delvey has achieved the kind of viral notoriety reserved for bad-behaving celebrities. After her conviction, Delvey was sentenced to four to 12 years in prison and was ordered to pay a $24,000 fine and restitution in the amount of about $200,000. She ended up serving just under four years at Rikers Island jail. Upon her early release for good behavior in February 2021, she was supposed to immediately return to Germany, but instead she stayed. More specifically, Immigration and Customs Enforcement alleges that she overstayed her visa in the United States. Delvey was then arrested by immigration authorities in March 2021 and held in detention for 17 months before she was released on house arrest with an electronic monitoring bracelet to track her comings and goings. Delvey is still fighting her deportation, seeking asylum and insisting that she must stay in the U.S. so she can appeal her criminal conviction. While her lengthy deportation proceedings continue and she remains out of custody, Delvey has able to earn an income and chase her celebrity status. She started a podcast while on house arrest and has done several interviews. She’s sold her prison artwork. She posts on social media and has secured media deals; Vogue has even filmed a tour of her apartment. But it’s not as if Delvey has escaped legal troubles in the meantime. She was accused of not paying her rent and was sued by her landlord, who alleged in legal filings that she owed more than $12,000. She ended up moving out. And that Netflix deal? Delvey sold the rights to her story for $320,000, but in the state of New York, criminals can’t profit from their crimes, so she had to pay her victims back first. In a day and age when Americans expect heartfelt and sincere mea culpas from other criminal defendants who have done the crime and done their time and now express deep regret for their wrongdoings, Delvey’s lack of remorse greatly offends. While countless others don’t have the luxury of being out of custody and remain locked up pending their own deportation hearings, the “fake heiress” remains out of custody, boasting a bejeweled electronic ankle monitor that Women’s Wear Daily wrote an entire article about. Folks are understandably not rooting for her. On the season premiere of “DWTS,” the studio audience was apparently deadly silent after her dancing debut. The three judges each gave her a 6 out of 10 for her performance. The phrase “Anna Delvey’s Lackluster DWTS Debut” was trending on X. She’s no one’s favorite to win. ## Is Anna Delvey Really Trying to Reinvent Herself? People are left to wonder if the con continues as Delvey makes money. She insisted on rejecting a plea deal, and her defense during trial was that she did nothing wrong. Her lawyer argued to the jury that she “exploited a system … and told little white lies along the way.” He went on to justify Delvey’s conduct with this: “Everyone lies when it’s convenient to them … and Anna did the same thing. She couldn’t be 100% honest because no one would listen to her.” This is a show that had former Trump White House press secretary Sean Spicer dancing in a ruffled, neon-yellow and green shirt and beating bongo drums. One day after being convicted by a jury of her peers, Delvey told The New York Times: “The thing is, I’m not sorry. I’d be lying to you and to everyone else and to myself if I said I was sorry for anything. I regret the way I went about certain things.” When asked if she would do the same things again, she replied: “Yes, probably so,” while laughing. It’s really not that shocking that “DWTS” saw the entertainment value behind casting Delvey. I mean, this is a show that had former Trump White House press secretary Sean Spicer dancing in a ruffled, neon-yellow and green shirt and beating bongo drums. Spicer routinely lied on behalf of Donald Trump and even to this day defends his tenure in that administration. When it comes down to it, Delvey’s inclusion really isn’t that surprising if you consider the fact that we have a man who has been convicted of 34 felony counts running for the highest office in the land — a man who also refuses to own up to his wrongdoings and to express any remorse or regret for the harm he has caused. Delvey wrote to Trump in 2021 to give him advice on how to navigate life in prison and how to thrive as a “model prisoner.” In her letter, she told Trump: “Not only was I surviving, I was thriving, and if I can do it, so, most likely, can you.” After her debut, Delvey told “DWTS” co-host Julianne Hough that she has reinvented herself many times, and this time she’s a ballroom dancer. But Delvey needs to remember that reinvention is not remorse or regret, and she seems to be sorely lacking in both. ## A Second Chance? Or Just Another Con? "She's not a robot. There is a heart in there somewhere, right?" Burke said of Delvey on her podcast, "Sex, Lies, and Spray Tans." Dancing With the Stars alum Cheryl Burke is offering some tough love for season 33 contestant Anna Delvey and words of wisdom for the fake heiress's pro partner, Ezra Sosa, from one dancer to another. In the latest episode of her Sex, Lies, and Spray Tans podcast, Burke — who spent 26 seasons on DWTS — didn't mince words when it came to the current season's most controversial contestant. Though Burke admitted the con woman (whose real last name is Sorokin) showed a lot of promise in her debut dance, she doesn't envy Sosa for being paired with Delvey just after being promoted to pro dancer. "Poor Ezra, for his first season, you know, he really not only has to deal with all of this press and attention for the very first time, but he also has to somehow crack her open," Burke said, referring to Delvey's emotionless manner. Burke pointed out that after the pair's performance in the premiere episode, host Julianne Hough asked Delvey how she felt, and the contestant responded that she was just happy she doesn't have to do that dance again. "This is what I mean," Burke explained. "As funny and dry as it is, most of America I don't think will relate to her. So I'm hoping Ezra or somebody cracks her open because she is human. She's not a robot. There is a heart in there somewhere, right? Like, I wish in a way the nerves would create a little bit more emotion." She noted that the energy in the room dropped when Delvey, who must wear an ankle monitor, and Sosa danced. "That was just a Debbie Downer," Burke said. "And people are not happy about her being on the show. So the only way, though, that she can change people's minds is if she shows emotion. This is key." Her advice for Sosa as a seasoned pro herself? "Ezra, get a therapist in that room if you can." As for Delvey, Burke suggested the Inventing Anna subject should try being more vulnerable. "She's continuing to leave a bad taste in people's mouths because she's not willing to be vulnerable," Burke said. "And unfortunately, with a show like this, you either are trusting the process and are willing to go for it, or you're not, and you're trying to be cool or you're trying to think, like, I'm trying to reinvent myself. But just do the work because the reinventing of yourself will happen, I promise, if you just focus on what is ahead, which is your next dance." Delvey and Sosa ultimately earned a score of 18 out of 30 for their cha-cha, which placed them around the middle of the pack. Although nobody was eliminated on the season premiere, next week will be a double-elimination episode. ## The Verdict: A Second Chance or a Con Artist's Redemption? Delvey's appearance on 'DWTS' has sparked a national conversation about redemption, second chances, and the blurred lines between entertainment and reality. While some believe she deserves a shot at a fresh start, others are skeptical about her motives. Is she genuinely trying to rebuild her life, or is this just another calculated move for fame and fortune? Only time will tell if Delvey can win over the viewers and judges, or if this attempt at reinvention will backfire spectacularly. One thing is certain, however: Anna Delvey's story is far from over. She remains a figure of fascination and controversy, and her journey on 'DWTS' promises to be a captivating, if divisive, chapter in her ongoing saga.