‘Dance Moms’: Kendall Vertes Was Only Supposed to Be on the Show for a Couple of Episodes
Though Kendall Vertes isn’t an original member of the Dance Moms cast, many fans think of the dancer as an OG. She and her mother, Jill Vertes, joined Dance Moms in season 2. After Abby Lee Miller held an open call for a new dancer to join the team, Kendall managed to beat out the competition. Miller declared that she was the right height and age for the team and also was fixated on Kendall’s beauty and her ability to “turn like a top.”
Though Kendall remained on probation for weeks (mostly due to Jill’s behavior) she eventually earned a permanent spot on the team. After that, she stuck around until the very end of season 7 of Dance Moms. The producers of the show even extended an invitation for Jill and Kendall to come back for season 8, but they declined to return. Still, aside from Nia Sioux and her mom, Dr. Holly Hatcher-Frazier, Kendall and Jill were the mother-daughter pair who were in the most episodes of the show.
Jill and Kendall Vertes were only supposed to join the ‘Dance Moms’ cast for a few episodes
Funnily enough, Jill and Kendall were only supposed to stick around for a few episodes. In a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight, Jill revealed that she never could’ve predicted how long their Dance Moms journey would be. “No one knew it was gonna be such a phenom,” Jill shared. “You know like I came on in season 2. They had reached out for me and Kendall to audition and originally it was supposed to be for a couple [of] episodes.”
Jill continued on to share that early on in the show, the Dance Moms producers gave them no indication of how many episodes they would film. “Because each season really we never really knew how many episodes they were going to shoot,” Jill stated. “At least early on, like it just kept going and going and going. And, you know, you’d sign on for six episodes, and then they’d make you sign a contract for 23 more [and] we would shoot up to 36 episodes a season.”
Why the Vertes’ chose to stay on until Season 7
So why did Jill and Kendall stay on the Dance Moms cast for so long? According to Jill, it was a wonderful opportunity for her little Kendall that she didn’t want to pass up. “It was an opportunity for the kids,” Jill confessed. “Like I think all of us, we did it for the children. You know we wanted them they enjoyed it and we wanted them to see what it was like to travel. Literally, we traveled around the world having our kids dance. It was a great opportunity.”
Being a part of the Dance Moms cast certainly did earn Jill and Kendall many opportunities that they wouldn’t have otherwise had. We’re sure fans of the show are pleased that Jill and Kendall stayed on the show as long as they did. Whether fans loved them or hated them, they always bought a very entertaining and dramatic flair to the show. After all, who can forget Jill screaming in her infamous cowboy hat?
