‘Dancing with the Stars’ 20 spotlight; Will Suzanne Somers surprise the competition?
Suzanne Somers is a contestant on “Dancing with the Stars” this season, but if we are being honest, we could have thought that she was a contestant years ago. This feels like someone producers have probably gone after for some time; she’s a classic TV star, and producers love to have one of these on the show every season. Also, she has some controversial viewpoints, which should keep the conversations going among viewers. Sure, she probably won’t bring those up on the show, but still.
Let’s just hope that Suzanne embraces her underdog status early in this season. She is not going to be favored at any point, but if she brings the personality and a sense of artistry to what she does, she could be a darkhorse to go further than you would think.
Name – Suzanne Somers
Age – 68
Claim to fame – Former star of “Three’s Company” and “Step by Step.” Also, author, activist, and host of the brief “Candid Camera” revival in the late 1990s.
Partner – Tony Dovolani. He excels at working with older pros, but the flip side of that is that there are few times in which he actually makes it far in a season. He won with Melissa Rycroft during the All-Stars season, but that is his only Mirrorball. With that being said, he is one of our favorite pros.
Strengths – The advantage to being an older celebrity is that the show has an older viewership. Many at home may relate to Suzanne, and remember her fondly for some of her earlier work. This should help her get some attention in the early going. Also, as an actor she should excel at getting into the character of a dance.
Weaknesses – She is older, and that means that she will probably have to work much harder at the technique and getting complicated moves down to someone a third her age. You multiply Willow Shields’ age by four, and she’s still younger. Also, she is not someone in the headlines much today, so we don’t get the sense people are really buzzing to see her on the show.
Prediction – We hope that she is really fun, and she does better than we think she will. Unfortunately, right now it feels like her ceiling is three or four weeks. We don’t get the sense that there is a big fan base out there, and she won’t be the best dancer on the season.
If you want to see the rest of our “Dancing with the Stars” spotlights (only two to go!), head over to the link here. Also, you can sign up today to score some further TV updates on all we cover courtesy of our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: ABC.)