Charity Lawson didn’t let some negative feedback from Dancing With the Stars judge Carrie Ann Inaba ruin her season 32 finale experience.
The Bachelorette alum, 27, and partner Artem Chigvintsev sought redemption during the Tuesday, December 5, competition for their week one tango, eventually earning a 29 out of 30 for the routine. While Inaba, 55, found the pair’s connection “palpable,” she pointed out “something that looked like, maybe, it was a mistake,” causing the audience to boo.
Despite the criticism, Lawson felt as though she and Chigvintsev, 41, accomplished the redemption aspect of the challenge. “I think I was a little confused [by Carrie Ann’s comments] and I don’t really know what the error was, but I feel really happy with that dance,” she exclusively told Us Weekly after the show. “And despite that, I mean, obviously, Bruno [Tonioli] and Derek [Hough] still gave me a great score and great feedback, too. So, it’s OK. It happens.”
Tonioli, 68, and Hough, 38, each gave the couple 10 points, but Inaba only offered the pair a nine. Later in the night, Lawson and Chigvintsev earned a perfect 30 for their cheerleading-inspired freestyle routine.
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“It was, like, the best thing. I was like, ‘Artem is a genius for this,’ because I was like, ‘I don’t really know,’” Lawson said of the concept. “I mean, freestyle, you do whatever you want, you highlight whatever you’re great at. But the fact that he was like, ‘You’re great at cheerleading because you did cheer, and now I get to incorporate that into ballroom,’ I was like, ‘Oh, this is the best.’”
While rehearsing for the live show, Lawson was rushed to the hospital after injuring her jaw while practicing a toss. She reassured Us that she’s “OK,” adding, “The jaw is great.”
Despite being “freaked out” by her injury, Lawson’s performance went off without a hitch. “I couldn’t open my mouth ‘cause it got hit and it was just really sore,” she told Us. “But it was just one of those moments where I was like, ‘Oh, it’s just a little freak accident,’ and just had to get some ice and some Motrin. But we’re all good.”
Lawson and Chigvintsev ended the season in fourth place above Alyson Hannigan and Sasha Farber. Ariana Madix and Pasha Pashkov landed in third place, leaving Jason Mraz and Daniella Karagach and Xochitl Gomez and Val Chmerkovskiy in the running for the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy. Gomez, 17, and Chmerkovskiy, 37, ultimately walked away with the win.
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Lawson said wrapping up her DWTS experience was “bittersweet,” telling Us, “It truly has been one of the most fun weeks, even though it’s the last … it’s very intense still. But I had the most fun this week, tonight. Best dances I think we’ve had all season.”
With the season over, Lawson is looking forward to enjoying some quality time with fiancé Dotun Olubeko. “The holidays [are] around the corner, so we’re going to spend it with my family,” she shared. “This is the first time he’s going, actually, to my hometown, which is crazy ‘cause we hopped right into this [after The Bachelorette], so we haven’t even had a beat to just go home and [have] him see where I was from or where I was raised. But we’ll be spending it with my family.”
She’ll also be making a special appearance on the DWTS Live Tour in 2024 along with Gomez and fellow season 32 alum Harry Jowsey. “After that, yeah, [Dotun and I will] sit down and figure out, ‘OK, when’s the wedding?’ and we’ll set a date and we’ll figure it out,” Lawson told Us.
With reporting by Hannah Kahn