Two Men Storm The Stage After Ryan Lochte Dances On Dancing With The Stars, Details For What Happened
Wasn’t the incident last night on Dancing With The Stars scary? I felt so sorry for Ryan Lochte. Enough with the hate already. Anyway, Entertainment Weekly has details for what happened. KUDOS to security, the judges, the crew, and Derek Hough for the way they handled the incident.
Two men stormed the stage of the Dancing with the Stars premiere Monday to protest Ryan Lochte’s participation on the ABC show.
The men wore t-shirts that featured the Olympian’s name crossed out. A group of seven to eight people wearing the same shirt encouraged them from the audience just as judge Carrie Ann Inaba began to give her critique.
“Excuse me, excuse me,” shouted Inaba, as a bit of the commotion appeared on camera. While a stunned Lochte and his partner Cheryl Burke stood in silence, Tom Bergeron took the show to break.
That’s when the ballroom erupted. While most of the crowd shouted in support of Lochte — who previously copped to “over-exaggerating” a story about a robbery at gunpoint in Rio de Janerio this summer — Derek Hough rushed in from backstage in an attempt to quell the protesters who yelled “liar” to the swimmer. “You need to get your negativity out of here,” he shouted at the group of men and women, who can be seen in the Tweet vid below.
“This is my home and I was just so shocked that people would come here and be so negative,” Hough told PEOPLE. “This is a safe place for people to learn a new skill and seek redemption or start a new chapter in their life and that’s what Ryan is trying to do and I just felt so defensive that someone would try and ruin that for him and for everyone watching, so I took it upon myself to make sure they were escorted out. I wanted to protect my home.”
Several security guards, meanwhile, quickly grabbed the two men — one of whom fell back into Lochte, Burke, and Bergeron. The men were then handcuffed and taken into custody by the Los Angeles Police Department.
More at Entertainment Weekly. Pure Derek Hough has more details as well. Here is a report from ABC7…
ETA: Below are reports from GMA…
Exclusive #DWTS Video Of Security Taking Down Those 2 Goofballs Harassing Ryan Coming Up On #GMA! REPLAY HERE! pic.twitter.com/FVxSEOKms9
— Al Kahn (@idolxfactor1) September 13, 2016
Good for Derek! I was wondering about Peta as I noticed she had been in the front row before. Not surprised Maks ran out…guess there was a lot of drama while we were on commercial break!
I’ve been on the On Camera Audience waiting list for five years and not a hope of a ticket but a group of Lochte haters can get floor adjacent (not balcony) tickets? Just glad it was peaceful, given all the weirdness these days.
Thank goodness these losers didn’t run up and attack Cheryl and Ryan while they were dancing. This could have turned out much worse than it did.
Mad props to Derek. Makes me like him even more
Wow!! I’m still shocked that happened last night! Tom IS the best! And well, Derek?? He just made me love him even more!
Those protesters are cowards! The Ballroom is NO place to stage a protest!
I was in shock when I saw that. We had the TV on and I also had my laptop open on All Access so I pulled the dance floor view up and saw the men being tackled by security.
I LOVE DEREK. This is why I love this man. To him, this show is not about winning. It’s about the love he feels for the show, cast, and crew, and how protective he is of them. You can clearly see that. I saw Maks, Sharna, and from backstage, Lindsay and Allison go out and comfort Ryan and Cheryl. Poor Cheryl looked like she was holding back tears.
I mean, I myself am not a fan of what Lochte did but what these men did…not the right place for that. Actually, there’s no place for that. I felt horrible for them.
You said it, All!! And huge kudos to Derek!!
Sueb, I agree….what a shame they got in.
Props to the security team, especially the one who tackled the man closest to Ryan and Cheryl. I know that audience members are screened for weapons before they are allowed into the ballroom, but you can still hurt someone physically without a weapon. That security officer acted exactly as he should have by getting that guy away from Lochte and subdued on the floor.
So glad that security took care of those ignorant people. I could see them protesting outside; but this is a happy, loving show I love how our Derek Hough noticed more protesters up in the balcony and ordered them to leave this “positive” place. Love you!!! Derek, and how you care about this show.
Tom said they dressed appropriate; but took some clothing off to reveal the T-shirts. I hope this goes away and the show can concentrate on next week’s Monday for our 2nd week of DWTS. I bet people will be searched more thoroughly next week and more attention is paid to guests clothing. Like I said, I hope this blows over and next week runs smooth as if nothing happened this week.
Cheryl looked like her world was shattered – and maybe it was. Can’t imagine. I hope she’s OK.
That was horrible.
I’m just sorry that the DWTS Security did not move fast enough. How did those 2 ignorant men get that close on stage. They should have been stopped before that got that far.
My family and I gave him a vote after we saw this.
I hope and pray that Security will be more prepare and on alert.
Thank you Derek!
And Ryan, as far as I’m concerned, you’re forgiven. Anyone who who puts themselves out there like that, all the while receiving hate and threats daily, and the public humiliation, I would hide under the covers indefinitely. It takes guts for Ryan to do this. He’s earned my support.
I would really love it if Michael Phelps were in the audience next week.
Look the guy did a stupid thing (as did PHELPS 2-3 years earlier I might add) he’s been punished fairly severely by the US Swimming Association. I sincerly hope we can let go of our anger and give Ryan a chance to turn his life around. Please tell me we have not abandoned the idea of forgiveness in our over zealous nationalistic sense of pride. On a more positive note the protestors pretty well made sure that the calmer more rational folks voted for Ryan and insured that he will stick around a few weeks more than he might have had they done nothing at all.
Ryan L. has expressed sincere regrets for his behavior in Rio. He deserves forgiveness and respect for that. People should be encouraging him to move forward in the positive direction that he is on, not tearing him down. There is a Book that I have read that says when someone has asked for forgiveness, never should their behavior even be mentioned again. Ryan, you and Cheryl received 13 of my votes last night, because I want to see you continue. Good luck and keep dancing.
I agree with you guys. Ryan held it together so well. I still dont understand why these protesters felt so strongly about this. This is not a war you are protesting hello. And also somehow love derek even more than i already did.
What a terrifying incident on the show last night, and I feel so bad for Ryan that he was harrassed by these protesters like that. I applaud Tom, Derek, and the security for their very professional and effective way in handling this frightening situation. Tom remained calm, and after the two men were taken away by security, he continued on with the show as smoothly as possible. And without hesitation, Derek quickly and singlehandedly sprung into action to remove the remaining protesters who were in the balcony, protect his fellow DWTS family, secure peace and safety for all, and spread his message loud and clear of love, forgiveness, and positivity. I love and respect Derek for his bravery, for taking a stand against bullying and negativity, and for stepping forward to help in a time of crisis. This speaks volumes about his fine character. He is a true hero and a class act, and his actions, along with his beautiful message of love, will long be remembered. I’m so glad no one was hurt, and I hope that next week only kindness, acceptance, and forgiveness will fill the air in the ballroom.
While I’m no Lochte apologist, but the behavior of Monday night’s group of whackos is utterly inexcusable. I’m beginning to feel a degree of sympathy for Ryan. He certainly didn’t deserve what happened on Monday night in the ballroom.
Also, if his understanding is as limited as some have suggested elsewhere on this site, I feel he’s getting very poor guidance and support from the family, friends, and managers who should be helping him navigate the complicated world of Olympic-level athletics and celebrity. While no one could have anticipated the despicable behavior of Monday night’s protesters, I wonder why his support network continues to push him into the spotlight where he’s at risk of getting blindsided by situations he’s just not mentally adroit enough to take in and handle.
I’m sure the whole cast will rally strongly to support Ryan and Cheryl, and that should help them put this ugly, ugly incident behind them. Also, while some will applaud those jerks, I believe the siloent majority of average viewers will feel sympathy for Ryan in this situation.
@Maria D: I am a really big Michael Phelps fan and I just read an article last week asking him if he planned to visit DWTS and cheer on Ryan. His answer was that he had a busy work schedule and would be doing a lot of traveling and didn’t think he would be able to make it. On a side note, he was also asked if he would ever consider being on DWTS and he said no. Boo. Maybe if he sees Ryan improving his dance and staying longer, he might change his mind. Fingers crossed.
Everyone is entitled to opinion but there’s a time and a place for it.