Former Dancing with the Stars host, Tom Bergeron, has spilled some NSFW secrets about his time on the hit ABC show.
The 71-year-old, who hosted DWTS for 15 years before his abrupt exit in 2020, revealed that his annual party for the cast and crew led to "hangovers and hookups."
Tom appeared on Danielle Fishel's Teen Beat podcast and explained that each season, he would throw a party for everyone involved in the show's production.
The only rule he implemented to allow departments that may not normally mingle the ability to do so was "no plus-ones allowed."
"I would throw a party – which I think they still do – mid-season for the staff, cast and crew," he explained.
"So it would just be different departments that might not otherwise mingle during the course of the season, because it's a big machine to put that show on the air."
© Getty ImagesTom's plan paid off perhaps more than he anticipated, as he revealed that he would later hear stories about just how well the departments got on.
"They would all get to mingle. And later in the week, I would get the benefit of hearing about hangovers and hookups," he recalled, jokingly adding: "It was great, money well spent."
© Getty ImagesTom hosted DWTS from its launch in 2005 until his shocking exit in 2020 after the show cast Donald Trump's former Press Secretary, Sean Spicer.
Speaking on former pro dancer Cheryl Burke's podcast Sex, Lies, and Spray Tans in 2023, he recalled how, ahead of the 28th season of the show, which was set to air during the contentious 2020 election, he suggested to show execs that they forgo casting any politicians from either political party to offer viewers a "wonderful escape" from the anxiety-inducing news cycle of the time.
© Getty ImagesTom claimed there was an agreement to follow through, however, recalling a subsequent meeting to go over the cast, he said: "This former showrunner says to me, 'You might want to sit down for this last one.' I said 'Why?' And then they told me who it was," before referring to Sean as "the former press guy," to Trump.
"I said, 'Guys, this is exactly what we said we wouldn't do. Don't go there. This is, you know, not the right time, play to our strengths, be the show that gives people a break from all this [expletive.]'"
He further shared how the showrunners and producers' compromise was suggesting he take the season off; however, calling the decision a "betrayal," he added: "At that moment, I knew, 'This is probably my last season.'"
© GettyTom had previously alluded to his feelings about the casting in a statement shared on X (formerly Twitter), at the time denouncing the casting of any politicians, which he told Cheryl he didn't warn the DWTS crew about.
"They had screwed me. I'm gonna screw them," he added. "But I wanted the viewers to know this was a step too far to me. This was a step too far on the cusp of an election year. And again — had it been a Democrat, same statement."
Tom was subsequently let go from DWTS and said in another Tweet in July 2020 that he had been "informed @DancingABC will be continuing without me."
