In a recent tirade, Abby Lee Miller slammed Dance Moms alums, accusing them of “abandoning” her.
While many have felt sorry for Miller amidst her battle with cancer and paralysis, her complaints did not go over well.
Now, Maddie Ziegler is speaking out, identifying Miller as a major source of trauma (obviously).
She is more than happy to announce that Miller is out of her life forever.
19-year-old Maddie Ziegler is easily one of the most famous survivors of the Dance Moms gauntlet.
Speaking to Cosmopolitan, she fully acknowledges that her childhood on reality TV did not make the best impression.
“People thought I was a brat because in all my interviews, I would say, ‘I’m the best. I know I’m going to win,’” Maddire called.
Of course, Maddie was only 8 years old when she made her Dance Moms debut.
“But,” Maddie explained, “that’s because the producer was telling me to say that.”
She affirmed: “I don’t think I’m better than everyone else.”
“I was just doing whatever they told me to do,” Maddie recalled.
The young entrepreneur admitted that she went along with it “because I thought that’s what you did.”
Not mincing words, Maddie admitted: “They set you up for failure.”
Abby Lee Miller has been widely condemned for toxic, racist, and even abusive behavior on the show.
There is simply no excuse for screaming at children, or for ridiculing them for their failures.
As a young adult, Maddie has had years to process the harm that Miller inflicted.
“It’s weird because there were really amazing times,” Maddie remarked.
“But,” she continued, “there were also a lot of things that were really, really not great for us kids.”
Among so many other things, Maddie noted that she was not allowed to befriend other dancers.
“I’ve had to unlearn a lot of those things,” Maddie admitted.
Some child stars grow up to watch old episodes that they filmed.
Maddie has shared that she feels no desire for a walk down Dance Moms memory lane.
“I did watch a little bit of an episode from the very beginning to show my boyfriend…” Maddie shared.
“And we both were like, ‘This is sad. We need to turn this off,’” she admitted.
Many people had the exact same reaction when the series was originally airing.
Maddie shared that her family did not want to stick with the program, and at one point tried to leave.
A contract with the network forced her to continue to participate, unfortunately.
“My family and I really tried to leave for the last three seasons,” Maddie revealed.
“But when you’re in a contract, it’s really hard,” she lamented.
“Eventually,” Maddie added, “I finally got out.”
We all remember Miller’s response to Maddie and Mackenzie’s departure. She locked herself in an office and sobbed.
“She was distraught. For the longest time, we felt so guilty,” Maddie admitted.
“She trained me, she helped me,” she acknowledged.
“But also,” Maddie continued, “I knew I would be okay without her and I was sick of being in a toxic environment.”
Maddie is no longer part of the Dance Moms world, and shared that she has not spoken to Miller since leaving.
This suits her just fine.
Sagely, Maddie shared that she never wants to speak to Abby Lee Miller again.
“I feel at peace, definitely,” Maddie Ziegler expressed.
Therapy, she shares, has really helped her to process the trauma and to deal with emotions in a healthy way.
“I’ve learned I’m not going to be in trouble if I’m feeling bad or if I have an injury,” Maddie shared. “That’s the biggest difference.”
