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Marla Maples Gets ‘Fired’ By ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Voters

By Victoria Miller
Published on: 23:26 PST, Apr 11, 2016

Marla Maples has been fired from Dancing With the Stars. The actress and ex-wife of longtime Celebrity Apprentice host Donald Trump was eliminated on the fourth week of the celebrity ballroom competition on the heels of the premature exits of Geraldo Rivera and Mischa Barton. But unlike the former DWTS ejectees, Maples was actually a decent dancer, and she left some less skilled competitors (Doug Flutie, we’re looking at you!) in her wake.

Maples and her pro partner Tony Dovolani appeared on Good Morning America on Tuesday, where they both expressed shock over their sudden ousting.

“I have to say, for the first time in 21 seasons, I did not expect this at all,” Dovolani said. “We had such a great journey, she was growing every single week, it felt like she was really hitting her stride.”

Ditto for Maples, who said her heart is broken over the thought of missing out on the rest of the DWTS competition.

“Truly, my heart’s broken. I love the show. I’ve had a rough few years, and this helped me learn how to not just walk again but learn how to dance. So I really hoped to continue and I hoped we could just keep sharing the fun.”

Immediately following her elimination on Monday, Marla Maples said her tears after her 21-point Most Memorable Year jive last week were tears of joy, not tears of sadness. Maples was proud of her dance, which was dedicated to her daughter, Tiffany Trump.

“We have had so much fun. Don’t let those tears fool you,” Maples said of her dance with pro partner Tony Dovolani. “Those were happy tears.”

Backstage after her elimination was announced, Marla Maples spoke to reporters. According to People, Maples described her experience on the show as “amazing.”

“I’ve had an amazing experience. Working with Tony has been incredible.”

Marla Maples also took to Twitter to say she was sad to leave the competition but is grateful she was even asked to compete on the celebrity dancing show.

While Maples had a shaky few weeks on DWTS, her final dance with Dovolani was by far her best performance. As part of the show’s annual Disney Night, Maples channeled The Little Mermaid’s Aerial for an elegant waltz to the song “Part of Your World.” Marla scored 28 out of 40 points after a performance that was deemed “solid” by judge Len Goodman. Maples even told DWTS co-host, Erin Andrews, she felt “empowered” after the Mermaid dance, and she joked that she liked being a redhead.

Marla’s elimination from Dancing With the Stars came on a night when her daughter Tiffany was in the studio audience, and one week after Maples paid tribute to her daughter’s 1993 birth year as her Most Memorable Year.

During her Tiffany-inspired dance, which ultimately proved to be her losing dance based on low judges’ scores and viewer votes, Marla detailed her life as a single mother. While she was careful to say that Donald Trump loved their daughter too, Marla made it clear: She was the parent.

And it was clear Marla had plenty of support from her family, including her famous ex-husband, too. When Marla first signed on to DWTS, Donald Trump told People he was happy for her. The 69-year-old GOP presidential candidate also predicted his ex-wife would go far in the competition.

“I think it is wonderful. I am very happy for her and think she will do very well.”

While the Donald’s forecast was wrong, Marla previously said her stint on the show would help serve as a distraction to her ex’s presidential campaign. During the live DWTS cast announcement, Marla even told Good Morning America that it was a good time for her to dance.

“When life gets challenging, you just have to dance right? It’s amazing!”

Unfortunately, Marla Maples never really came into her own on Dancing With the Stars. The shadow of her ex-husband followed her throughout her short time on the competition, where she was introduced by host Tom Bergeron each week as “the former Mrs. Trump.” Maples and Trump ended their six-year marriage in 1999, so her days with the Donald are long done, but that was still the way Marla was defined on the show.

Take a look at the video below to see Marla Maples’ Disney Night Little Mermaid dance on Dancing With the Stars.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qn2AEaBWuvk

[Photo By Kevin Winter/Getty Images]

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