Christie Brinkley says her daughter Sailor Brinkley-Cook’s Dancing with the Stars elimination came as “a shock.” After a week off from eliminating contestants (Thank you Disney Night!), the ABC dance competition saw a bottom two that left the judges visibly stunned. It was between pop singer Ally Brooke and Brinkley-Cook for the judges’ save.
Judges Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli both opted to save Ally Brooke. Sailor Brinkley-Cook was emotional, as her professional partner, Valentin Chmerkovskiy, tried to comfort her. Brinkley-Cook was not the only one left shocked by her Dancing with the Stars elimination. Her mother, Christie Brinkley, was surprised too. On her mom’s reaction, Brinkley-Cook told USA Today:
She was sobbing on the phone when I spoke to her after. It was as devastating for her as it was for me. She just didn’t expect it. And this was the one week she didn’t come watch the show. This was just an unexpected twist.
As someone who thought I noticed that Christie Brinkley appeared to be absent from the ballroom, this is confirmation. Sadly, she was not there to comfort her daughter following her shocking Dancing with the Stars elimination. It would have been impossible for Brinkley to see it coming. Sailor Brinkley-Cook was sailing through the competition up to that point.
On the night of her elimination, she had scored a 27 out of 30 for her jive. Her judges' votes from the previous week were also sturdy. During Disney Night, Sailor Brinkley-Cook scored a 24 out of 30 for her Cinderella-inspired Viennese waltz. In comparison, Ally Brooke earned three points more with a 27 for her contemporary routine to “Beauty and the Beast.”
That it came down to either of Dancing with the Stars’ most formidable dancers is not entirely shocking as a long-time viewer. Just last season, Fuller House’s Juan Pablo Di Pace was eliminated in one of the series’ signature shockers. And, following the divisive victory of radio personality Bobby Bones, Dancing with the Stars took a hiatus.
Hints that Dancing with the Stars had been listening to disgruntled fans led to hope. The hit show’s return brought a new voting system that left many wondering if it was an improvement, with CinemaBlend’s Laura Hurley highlighting it as still being unfair. Regardless of all of the changes, a shocking elimination like Sailor Brinkley-Cook and the near-elimination of Ally Brooke is startling.
That Sailor Brinkley-Cook managed to make it to Week 6 is still a big accomplishment. Fans will recall that she was a last-minute addition to Dancing with the Stars’ lineup. Her mom was originally set to compete on the ABC series as a member of the cast for fall 2019.
Right before Season 28 was about to get underway, Christie Brinkley had to drop out of the competition after breaking her arm. NFL star Ray Lewis also ended up leaving due to injury. Hopefully, the rest of the competitors can remain healthy as they head into the next stretch.
Find out how the dancing drama continues to unfold! New episodes of Dancing with the Stars will continue airing Mondays this fall, at 8 p.m. ET, on ABC.
