EXCLUSIVE: Chris Kattan Opens Up About His Life-Threatening Accident After Emotional 'DWTS' Elimination
*Caution: Spoilers ahead!*
Chris Kattan got emotional on Monday's Dancing With the Stars, while discussing the traumatic back injury that changed his life.
In a pre-recorded package that aired before his performance with partner Witney Carson, the former Saturday Night Live star opened up about his injury, and how it's impacted his time on the show.
"Last week I had a great time, but Carrie Ann [Inaba] said, 'Try not to be so stiff.' My first thought was, 'I don't know how to do that,'" Kattan admitted in a solo interview.
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The comic revealed that he broke his neck 14 years ago while working, and he's since required four surgeries to treat the injury, leaving him with a network of rods and screws in his spine.
"Part of what I used to do was physical comedy, but now I can't," an emotional Kattan shared. "It's really sad when somebody says, 'I miss the old Chris.' That sucks to hear."
"It's crazy that somebody can have that happen to them, and then be brave enough to try something like this," Carson told the DWTS cameras, wiping tears from her eyes.
According to Kattan, he was participating on the show simply because he finally could.
"Years before, I just physically couldn't do it. It's a comeback really," Kattan said. "I might not be the best dancer, but I'm just gonna go out there and do what I love doing and have a blast."
"I'm super proud of Chris," Carson added. "He really is just fearless and he brings life to the dance floor."
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For their week two routine, Kattan and Carson performed a jazz routine set to Outkast's "Hey Ya!" that brought a lot more life and vibrancy to the dance floor than their previous cha-cha. And Kattan's efforts were rewarded with higher scores than last week as well -- earning a 22 out of 40.
However, the improvement wasn't enough to keep them on for another week. When elimination came around, Kattan and fellow contestant Charo found themselves in jeopardy, but it was the Night at the Roxbury star who was sent home.
Speaking with hosts Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews after the elimination, Kattan had nothing but praise and love for his pro partner.
"She was an amazing inspiration, and I couldn't have done this without her," he said of Carson. "I had an incredible time."
However, Kattan also said that he wished the information about his broken neck and multiple surgeries would have been presented in the first week, so that fans would have understood why his dancing had been stiff.
Speaking with ET's Cameron Mathison after the show, Kattan said he thinks there "would have been a big difference" in the outcome of the episode if people knew about his struggle.
"It should have been [shown] in the very beginning, so I'm surprised it wasn't," Kattan said. "When I got on the show I was like, 'The only way I'm going to do the show is if is if they know that, you know, I've had surgery and stuff in the past,' you know?... Otherwise I'm gonna look kinda like a lame-o or whatever."
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However, Kattan said that the experience was still "amazing," and he's glad to have gotten the chance to learn from Carson.
"Working with Witney was tremendous. She's an amazing dancer," Kattan said, adding that his pro partner was "just phenomenal."
"I had such a great time with him," Carson shared. "I could not stop laughing, like in rehearsals, just full laughter all the time. And he just really inspired me and a lot of people. It was a pleasure."
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