Whitney Leavitt Reveals She Thought Her ‘Villain’ Persona Would ‘Carry’ to ‘DWTS’

Whitney Leavitt may have exited the ballroom, but it’s not stopping her from taking center stage.

One day after the Dancing with the Stars finale aired on ABC, The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star, 32, appeared on the Nov. 26 episode of Call Her Daddy alongside her dance partner, Mark Ballas.

Podcast host Alex Cooper gave them the chance to showcase the freestyle routine they never got to perform on DWTS and a venue for Whitney to announce her casting in a movie.

At the start of the episode, which was recorded before the DWTS finale, Whitney confessed that she felt “a roller coaster of emotions” after getting eliminated during the semi-finals. “I feel grateful, but I also feel sad,” she shared.

She also opened up about the backlash she and Mark faced, noting that she was critiqued for having previous dance experience because she earned a degree in Modern Dance at Brigham Young University. “As far as [her dance experience] went,” Whitney began, “this was still very new to me.”

Whitney also said she learned how to face DWTS audiences amid the ongoing backlash. Despite being “used to the hate” thanks to her role in Mormon Wives, she still had to watch Mark grapple with the onslaught of online criticism each week.

“I already knew like the persona that I had in the media,” Whitney said of being viewed as the “villain” on Mormon Wives. “I just felt like that was gonna carry with me onto Dancing With The Stars.”

According to Whitney, the “hardest part” of the backlash was watching Mark’s reaction.

“I had experienced it, but having someone that I loved and cared about so much experiencing that, in turn, hurt me,” she said. “Then we experienced it together.”

Whitney said she’s “definitely become a little bit more desensitized” to negative feedback, but she said it was “triggering” to watch someone experience that for the first time.

“At times, I felt like it was my fault because I was like, ‘Oh, maybe it’s because of me. Maybe it’s because he’s partnered with me,’ ” she said. “So then it felt like my fault. It was just like a roller coaster of emotions during that time.”

Mark also shared one of the many “relentless” comments he received: “Are you that cheap of a c— to rot and do this? Damn. You’re special. You’re completely worthless, and I hope you f—— burn in hell one day.”

The pair also acknowledged that the increase in hateful comments began at the five-week mark, which was Dedication Night. “It just exploded, and then it just went south,” Whitney recalled.

She also acknowledged that Mormon Wives season 3 premiering days before she was eliminated may have contributed to shifting opinions.

During Mormon Wives, she candidly said she rejoined the show to audition for DWTS. “I was very clear why I came back that season,” and audiences were split on their reaction. “You either had respect for it, or you were like, ‘Oh my gosh,’ ” Whitney said.

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While Whitney suspects that could be a contributing factor, Mark noted that although he’s “not too privy to” Mormon Wives drama, he “couldn’t even pinpoint” their elimination to one thing. “Sometimes this s— happens,” he said.

“I think with such a stacked cast and really great talent, great talent all around, you get to the point where we don’t know the votes,” Mark said. “Maybe some week, someone who’s been voting one way will be like, ‘You know what? I’m gonna throw these votes this way.’ ” 

At the DWTS season 34 finale, Whitney told Variety she would return to The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives for its fourth season.

The podcast appearance comes after Whitney tearfully shared her takeaways from the competition in a video on Instagram on Thursday, Nov. 20.

“I’m just gonna speak from the heart, and share what I’m feeling,” the reality star began. “I share the good, I share the bad, I share the ugly. So I’m just gonna keep doing that.”

Through tears, Whitney went on to say, “When you’re casted on Dancing with the Stars, you are seeing these people hours every single day. Then it just stops. It genuinely feels like a breakup. It feels like I’m, like, going through withdrawals right now. Today just felt so weird.”

Whitney concluded the video by thanking Mark, saying that she will “forever be so grateful” for their friendship.

“Like, I loved every bit of it, but the one thing that I have loved the most that I wasn’t expecting was getting a lifelong friend, a friend who makes fart noises every single day,” she added of Ballas. I’m just so grateful. I love you guys. And I f——- love this show.”