Con artist Anna Delvey, who posed as a wealthy heiress to wedge her way into a posh lifestyle among New York's upper-class elite, explained how she would be able to compete on Dancing with the Stars while still under house arrest.
In 2019, the 33-year-old Russian fraudster was convicted of grand larceny in the second degree, attempted grand larceny, and theft of services, which led to her being sentenced to 4 to 12 years in prison, fined $24,000, and ordered to pay nearly $200,000 in restitution.
Her story served as the basis for the Netflix miniseries Inventing Anna, created by Shonda Rimes and starring Julia Garner as Delvey.
Although she was released from prison on parole in February 2021 for good behavior, she was taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) the following month for overstaying her visa.
She was granted a $10,000 bail bond and released from prison on October 5, 2022.
However, she is required to remain under 24-hour home confinement with electronic monitoring and no social media access while she continues to legally contest deportation to Germany to remain in the US.
Despite her situation, Delvey will be participating in the 33rd season of Dancing with the Stars under the condition she wears an electronic ankle monitor.
An ABC promo shot of Delvey in advance of the new DWTS season prominently revealed her legal situation, with her house arrest anklet almost appearing as an accessory to her glitzy ballroom costume.
ABC
She explained to People magazine how the DWTS arrangement was made.
"Well, [DWTS] approached my team and I had to request ICE for permission to travel out of state because it's being filmed in Los Angeles and I'm based in New York," she said.
"It took them about 10 days to get it through the system and to get everything approved."
She added:
"By the time I got the approval, it was very close to the starting day so I kind of flew to LA pretty much the next day and I just decided why not?"
Regarding the potential backlash to her casting, Delvey replied:
"It's just not that serious. If someone is that upset about casting on a dancing show, I don't know what to tell them."
Social media users were shook over the reality dance competition featuring a convicted criminal.
Delvey will be teaming up on the dance floor with DWTS pro partner Ezra Sosa.
She told The Hollywood Reporter that wearing the ankle monitor wouldn't hinder her performance.
“In what way would it affect my performance? It’s actually pretty light," she said.
When asked about what she wanted viewers to know about her, Delvey told Good Morning America:
"How good I am at cha-cha."
Joining Delvey in the competition will be celebrity competitors Phaedra Parks, Eric Roberts, Tori Spelling, Dwight Howard, Brooks Nader, Joey Graziadei, Jenn Tran, Chandler Kinney, Stephen Nedoroscik, Reginald VelJohnson, and more.
The 33rd season of DWTS starts Tuesday, September 17 at 8 p.m. Easter Standard Time on ABC and Disney+, with episodes streaming the following day on Hulu.
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