Abby Lee Miller has claimed her former dance students were paid $50,000 each to participate in the upcoming Dance Moms reunion special, but she didn’t receive a dime from bosses who she claims didn’t inform her she would be participating in big measure.
This week, Lifetime released a trailer for the reunion, starring original cast members Brooke Hyland, 26, Paige Hyland and Kalani Hilliker, both 23, Chloe Lukasiak, 22, Kendall Vertes, 21, and Jojo Siwa twenty.
Abby, 58, claims she was not asked to take part in the two-hour special which launches on May 1 and accused bosses of using old footage to “make me look as bad as possible”.
“I saw the trailer and all I can say is that the producers clearly can’t come up with anything new,” Abby Lee told DailyMail.com exclusively.
Furious Abby Lee Miller has claimed her former dance students received $50,000 each to participate in the upcoming Dance Moms reunion special, while she didn’t receive a dime.
“They still use the same old images, they still use the same old conflicts and they still try to make me look as bad as possible. They’re still using me.
‘Those beautiful girls at this meeting are girls I helped raise. The girls who burst into tears in the trailer are girls who wouldn’t have become who they are without me. I helped raise them.
He continued: ‘Now they are successful, confident and filthy rich. They all got paid $50,000 to do this meeting. They didn’t ask me to participate and they didn’t pay me anything. Save your tears for the pillow.
The reunion will take place four years after the grand final in 2019 and 13 years after it first premiered in 2011.
Also appearing are Jojo’s moms, Brooke, Paige, Chloe, Kendall and Kalani, Jessalynn Siwa, Kira Girard, Christi Lukasiak, Jill Vertes and Kelly Hyland.
“Our girls are officially grown up… #DanceMomsReunion premieres May 1 only on @LifetimeTV,” Lifetime announced Wednesday on Instagram, along with a trailer.
Fans were quick to point out that studio owner Abby Lee and Abby Lee’s “favorite” dancer Maddie Ziegler did not participate.
Dance Moms followed an elite youth dance group from the Abby Lee Dance Company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and their quirky mothers as they competed across the United States.
Abby, 58, claims she wasn’t asked to participate in the two-hour show and says bosses didn’t let her know she would be featured heavily in the Lifetime special.
The reunion stars original cast members Brooke Hyland, 26, Paige Hyland and Kalani Hilliker, both 23, Chloe Lukasiak, 22, Kendall Vertes, 21, and Jojo Siwa, 20.
In the preview, Paige and Brooke, who joined the show in its first season, talk about the “feud” between their mother Kelly and Abby Lee that led to them abruptly quitting during season four.
“I feel like I ruined your life and your dancing career,” Kelly confesses to Brooke and Paige, who were 13 and 10, respectively, when they first appeared on the show.
Brooke breaks down in tears when Kalani, who was 13 when she joined in season four, admitted feeling like she “caused” the whole explosion.
Kelly called Abby Lee a “bully” after she claimed to have overheard the instructor talking about replacing Brooke in a group dance with Kalani backstage at a dance competition.
She felt that Abby Lee was trying to “replace” Brooke and Paige with Kalani, which Abby Lee insisted was not true.
The situation quickly escalated when Abby Lee confronted Kelly and Kelly slapped her. Kelly and the girls did not return to the show and Abby Lee filed charges against Kelly, which were later dropped.
Kelly attempted to sue both Abby Lee and Collins Ave Entertainment for negligence and breach of contract, but the lawsuit was ultimately dismissed and settled out of court.
Abby was speaking to promote Dancers against cancer – to non-profit organization with a mission to provide financial and inspirational support to dance educators, choreographers, dancers and their families affected by cancer.
Although Abby was familiar with the organization, she did not become involved until she was diagnosed in 2019 with Burkitt’s lymphoma, a rare and aggressive form of cancer.
The trailer includes footage from the reunion, as well as clips of some of the show’s most iconic moments, from Kelly’s backstage fight with Miller.
Chloe, pictured, and the other girls are seen crying as they reflect on the harsh treatment they claim they received from Miller.
Abby Lee told DailyMail.com: ‘They all got paid $50,000 to do this reunion. They didn’t ask me to participate and they didn’t pay me anything. Save your tears for the pillow
‘I was aware of it. I knew it. It was like I was just starting out in my world. And the next thing I knew I had cancer and I was in the hospital. “I was at the California Rehabilitation Institute,” he told DailyMail.com.
“And unbeknownst to me, on the walks, JoJo and a very dear friend of mine, Michelle Rogers, who is also a cancer survivor.
“The two of them were visiting me on behalf of Dancers Against Cancer and handed me a check for $10,000,” she said.
danCers Against Cancer has had widespread support from those passionate about dance, including former Dance Moms stars Jojo and Maddie.
Other celebrities who have shown their support include Julianne and Derek Hough, Jenna Dewan, Vanessa Hudgens, Olivia Newton John, Christina Applegate and Allison Holker Boss.
Each year, the organization hosts the industry’s annual dance awards and cancer benefit show.
Abby, who previously appeared on the spin-offs Dance Moms: Abby’s Studio Rescue and Dance Moms: Miami, launched his latest reality show, Mad House in September.
It features professional dancers competing for the opportunity to learn and live at Abby’s Mad House to advance their careers.
She also revealed that she was recently in New York City filming an episode for the return of Dance Moms, which will go by a different name.
“I’m filming season nine,” he said. “The show I’m filming is the original concept I was involved in. It’s not called Dance Moms, so some people are involved in it: hair, makeup, prop design, things like that. They’re involved.
Abby continues to promote Dancers Against Cancer, a nonprofit organization with the mission of providing financial and inspirational support to dancers and their families affected by cancer.
Each year, the organization hosts the annual Industry Dance Awards and Cancer Benefit Show and has had the support of those passionate about dance, including previous Dance Moms stars.
‘It gives a lot of kids the opportunity to appear on television and a lot of kids to participate. There is so much talent in the world. The children who dance today are incredible.”
In January, Abby sold her Pittsburgh dance studio, made famous on Dance Moms, in an off-market deal for $300,000.
“There used to be tons of kids with dreams…there was a 22-year-old with a dream to build my own state-of-the-art facility with the best sprung floors money could buy,” he wrote on Instagram at the time.
In 2017, Abby was charged with 20 counts of fraud and sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison.
He was also ordered to pay fines of $40,000 and $120,000.