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Dancing With The Stars has had its share of controversial contestants in the past, from White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer to Carole Baskin, the Tiger King star who was investigated for her involvement in her husband’s disappearance. But there’s one contestant who will appear on the upcoming season of the reality dance competition series who might prove to be the most controversial of all, former NFL star Adrian Peterson, who was indicted in 2014 for reckless or negligent injury to a child, his then-4-year-old son.
Dancer Sharna Burgess revealed her dismay at Peterson’s participation on DWTS on her podcast, Old-ish, which she co-hosts with Randy Spelling and her boyfriend Brian Austin Green. During a discussion about the new celebrity lineup for season 32 of DWTS, which Burgess is not a part of, she said, “There’s one person that I would love to share I’m really shocked is on there, which is Adrian Peterson, a football player. I had some people reach out to me and say, ‘Have you seen this? Do you know his history?’ I looked it up. The man has been charged with child abuse of his 4-year-old son, in the way that he punishes him. That is just devastating for me.”
After his indictment, Peterson pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of recklessly assaulting his son with a wooden implement.
“I’m telling you now if I walked into a room and that was my partner, I would turn around and walk right back out. There is no way — now being a mother — I would be able to stomach that. But him aside, the rest of the cast looks incredible,” Burgess added.
Burgess isn’t alone in her criticism, fans on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, also disapprove of his participation.
Peterson is dancing with Britt Stewart, who has performed in past seasons with Johnny Weir, Martin Kove, and Daniel Durant. In addition to Peterson, the season 32 cast includes Ariana Madix, Jason Mraz, and Jamie Lynn Spears.
