Backstage at DWTS: Sad Cloris Won't Go Away

Leachman finally leaves Dancing With the Stars...and we've got her exclusive reaction

Cloris Leachman was kicked off of Dancing With the Stars tonight—to the surprise of, oh, let's see, carry the one and you have...no one.

She took the news like a champ, giving a handshake to the judges and keeping her head held high...that is, until the cameras stopped rolling.

We hit the scene backstage tonight at DWTS and let there be no mistake: The 82-year-old dancing diva is devastated. And like a bad rash or a good friend (depending on your take on Cloris), she tells us she won't be going anywhere anytime soon...

"We got the boot," a glassy-eyed Cloris pouted like a sad clown backstage after the show. "I loved it here! I don't want to go!"

And therein lies the silver lining for all you Crazy Cloris fans: You'll be seeing her in the audience for at least a few weeks longer. "Wherever they push me," she told us, "that's where I'll go."

(Little known fact: Inside sources tell me that most of the DWTS contestants are offered cash bonus incentives to appear in the audience after they are eliminated, so that may be another motivating factor. May as well pop back a few more times and shimmy in the stands, right?)

Meanwhile, we set out to solve the biggest mystery of the season so far: what kept Cloris on the show for so long. Guest judge Michael Flatley gave us this expert opinion: "She became an audience favorite, and I think that's star power."

Sorry, Mikey, but we're still going with a different theory: It's called Vote for the Worst, and it's the same reason Sanjaya stuck around American Idol so long back in the day.

Regardless, Flatley tipped his hat to the 82-year-old who got out there and did something that not a lot of octogenarians would be able to do. "Cloris is a legend, as you can tell. She's an old world superstar."

Coming up next week, we'll get to see the celebs join up for some team dances (not to be confused with this week's utterly horrible group dance), where they will join forces on the dance floor to beef up your votes.

What do you think of Cloris' dismissal (was it her fanbase or Vote for the Worst?), and who are you rooting for now? Sound off below...