Hannah Brown and Carrie Ann Inaba Have a Tearful Confrontation on 'Dancing With the Stars'

From Woman's Day

Despite being an audience favorite, Hannah Brown has faced some tough judges' critiques on this season of Dancing With the Stars, particularly from judge Carrie Ann Inaba. And when Inaba was assigned to be Brown's coach for her redemption dance during week 10, the two had an emotional confrontation that left both of them in tears.

Brown and her partner Alan Bersten were asked to redo their rumba, which they'd originally performed in the third week. After the original dance, Inaba had some tough feedback for the former Bachelorette, saying that it "looked more like a cheerleading dance," and that she needed to work on her hip movement.

During a pre-taped package that aired before Brown and Bersten's performance on Monday night, viewers got an inside look into the rehearsals where Inaba made sure to crack down on Brown's hip movements. The former Miss Alabama seemed to be in her head during the rehearsal and began to get frustrated and started tearing up. When Inaba walked towards Brown to comfort her, she told the judge "I don't want to be touched."

Inaba asked Brown to tell her how she was feeling, to which Brown replied that she felt discouraged by the feedback she had been getting over the past few weeks.

"I’m so sorry that’s how you felt, that makes me sad," Inaba told Brown, while tearing up herself. "I’m sorry because that’s not what we’re here for. My job is to help you."

The interaction also elicited some emotional reactions from fans, who found themselves crying over the raw moment:

Others applauded Brown for her honesty and vulnerability, saying she should be proud of her work on the show.

After Brown and Bersten's redemption rumba, Brown took the opportunity to apologize to Inaba for any perceived disrespect.

"I just want to say I am so sorry if it seemed like I was dismissive of you trying to help me," Brown said. "I had a really hard day that day and it was really emotional trying to learn my contemporary and I didn’t handle my emotions very well and I know you’re trying to help me."

Inaba accepted the apology and reminded Brown that she understands that the show is extremely difficult for all the contestants.

"I was never offended by that, I know that this journey for everybody is so challenging," she said. "You improved a heck of a lot. I felt like you were very comfortable in your hips. I’m very proud of you Hannah, well done."

The other judges seemed to agree, giving the dance rave reviews, and the two dancers earned 9s across the board.

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