Dancing with the Stars has been thrown into chaos, with bosses scrambling to find a replacement in frantic last-minute talks after Veep actor Matt Walsh walked out amid the ongoing Writers Guild of Canada picket just days before the season premiere America (WGA) has withdrawn.
The ABC show is under increasing pressure to let go of its Hollywood stars. Demonstrators are also calling on Oscar winner Mira Sorvino (55) and How I Met Your Mother actress Alyson Hannigan (49) not to show solidarity with the strikers.
Matt – a WGA member – left rehearsals on Thursday morning and said he would not return until “an agreement has been reached with the WGA.”
It is said show bosses are taking care to check on audience members to ensure there are no disruptions. There is a possibility that there will be no audience at all when the show begins on Tuesday.
Veep’s Matt Walsh, a WGA member, left Dancing with the Stars before the show’s start
The actor and show bosses are discussing the possibility of Matt donating his fee to the WGA
The ABC competition show was picketed on Wednesday, with protesters calling out Matt as well as Oscar winner Mira Sorvino and actress Alyson Hannigan
Matt posted his statement on Instagram Thursday morning
“I am taking a break from Dancing with the Stars until an agreement is reached with the WGA,” he wrote in a statement on Instagram on Thursday. “I was excited to attend the show and did so under the impression that it was not WGA and was under a different agreement.
“When I was informed this morning by my union, the WGA, that this was strike work, I walked away from my rehearsal.”
“I have and will always stand with my union members from the WGA, SAG and DGA.” Beyond our artists’ union, I understand the many people affected by the strike and hope for a quick and fair solution and that, to one day work again with all the wonderful people I met on DWTS who tolerated my dancing.”
It comes a day after 25 people demonstrated outside the LA rehearsal studio, calling on Matt, Alyson and Mira to stop in solidarity.
A source told : “Everything is on the table and it’s going to be a really long week and weekend.” Negotiations over a replacement have begun and if replacements are to be made it could pose a problem, so to be shortly before the start of the show.
“But the show has made changes in the past when it comes to last-minute changes, dating back to when Christie Brinkley couldn’t do the show and her daughter ended up taking her place.
“But a problem that producers also see is that no one wants to join the show just to be protested.” “It’s a tense situation.”
They added that Matt had spoken to show bosses about the possibility of donating his fee to the WGA.
When discussing possible plans for the first live show, they continued: “To avoid difficult situations when you know the show is live, the show will really pay attention to the audience that shows up and check them out to make sure they are not protesters.”
“They’ve also thought about not having an audience the first week, or having an audience of family and friends to avoid any sort of disruption, as was the case with Ryan Lochte a few years ago.” Whatever happens, security will be at an all-time high.’
In 2016, protesters stormed the stage after swimmer Ryan Lochte’s first performance in response to his false claim that he and three of his teammates had been robbed at gunpoint at a gas station in Rio de Janeiro.
Matt was greeted with a sign that read, “Matt Walsh, don’t dance as a scab!” WGA demonstrated at Dancing with the Stars and BBC Studios Los Angeles as he arrived for practice on Wednesday.
Hours before his statement, he expressed his enthusiasm for the show in a video shared on the official Dancing with the Stars Instagram account.
In a video with his professional dance partner Koko Iwasaki, 26, he was seen nodding his head as she gushed: “You guys have to watch Matt! ‘I’m so impressed, he’s the best.’
Dancing with the Stars is a WGA show with a WGA writer.
WGA forwards are calling for the trio to exit the series before Tuesday’s debut
Matt, pictured with Koko Iwasaki, had said he was looking forward to his ballroom debut
Oscar winner Mira was also targeted by demonstrators on Wednesday on her way to rehearsals
“How I Met Your Mother” actress Alyson Hannigan also came under fire from picketers
Mira was also highlighted Wednesday on a sign that read, “Mira Sorvino, do not cross the picket line.”
The Sound of Freedom actress, who is a member of SAG-AFTRA, previously insisted her place in the lineup did not violate strike rules.
“No, we are allowed to do reality shows, unscripted shows, competitions or documentaries,” she tweeted. “It’s a different contract.”
Alyson has faced a barrage of calls to resign, and people have targeted her rehearsal videos on Instagram.
“Why are you crossing the strike line?” “This is really destructive,” one user wrote.
Another commented: “Union membership 101. Don’t cross picket lines.”
has reached out to reps for Matt, Alyson and Mira and Dancing with the Stars for comment.
A writer on the picket line told Deadline: “The WGA respects all writing, whether it’s a single writer for a feature film with 500 people or a single writer for a television show with 500 people; We don’t care and will protect the writing across the board.
“Dancing with the Stars is a WGA-signed show.” It shouldn’t shoot now.
“ABC, narratively speaking, has no fall programming because they chose to force this strike on us, so we want to disrupt their entire programming as much as possible so they can come back to the table with a reasonable offer.”
“Dancing with the Stars” co-host Julianne Hough avoided any mention of the reported chaos as she joined “Live with Kelly and Ryan.”
The cast of Dancing with the Stars was officially revealed on GMA earlier this month
“Dancing with the Stars” co-host Julianne Hough, 35, avoided any mention of the reported behind-the-scenes chaos during an appearance on “Live with Kelly and Mark” Thursday morning.
“This season is going to be so much fun,” she teased. “The cast is incredible. Since Alfonso (Ribeiro) and I will be hosting, I know we’ll probably dance at some point. It would be strange not to.’
She also mentioned that the show was a tribute to her late colleague Len Goodman, who died of bone cancer in April at the age of 78.
Although it was previously announced that the Mirrorball trophy had been renamed after the late judge, Julianne shared: “I know Len Goodman passed away this year, so we are here to honor and celebrate him. He was an integral part of this show.”
The WGA – which represents 11,500 screenwriters – has been on strike since May 2 over an ongoing labor dispute with the Alliance of Motion Pictures.
SAG-AFTRA – the Screen Actors Guild American Federation of Television and Radio Artists – joined the walkout on July 14. It is the first time since 1960 that both unions have gone on strike together.
WGA contract negotiations resumed Wednesday. Hollywood studios are reportedly moving closer to an agreement to end the strike after an “encouraging” face-to-face meeting.
Earlier this week, Drew Barrymore announced that she would be pausing the revival of her talk show following intense criticism of her lack of solidarity.