What Really Happened To Ashley On The Challenge
For as much as a reality competition show like "The Challenge" tries to manufacture conflict, sometimes the juiciest drama happens off camera. That's the case with the show's 37th season, "The Challenge: Spies, Lies, and Allies," as contestant Ashley Mitchell has just been disqualified.
"As you've seen, Ashley is no longer at headquarters. Ashley has broken one of our rules," host T.J. Lavin said on this week's episode, which aired on November 10, 2021. "Because of that, Ashley is no longer able to stay in the game. She has been deactivated. She is no longer able to continue in this game for the rest of the season" (via Us Weekly).
Lavin didn't elaborate on which rule Mitchell broke, but unconfirmed reports from social media accounts have shed more light on the situation.
Mitchell is a longtime veteran of the series. After making her debut on "Real World: Ex-Plosion" in 2014, she's competed on nine seasons of "The Challenge." She notched her first win in 2017 on "Invasion of the Champions." She won again the following year on "Final Reckoning," when she stole the $1 million prize from her partner, Hunter Barfield.
This is actually the second time a contestant on Season 37 has had to leave the show for personal reasons, after Nam Vo had to be medically discharged at the season's outset. But Ashley Mitchell's departure is a bit more complicated. Here's everything we know.
Ashley Mitchell reportedly got into a verbal altercation with another cast member
According to the Twitter account @jaychallenge1, which is a spoiler account for "The Challenge," Mitchell made a personal attack against cast member Josh Martinez. "Yup all Ash said in a [sic] argument was we all know your [sic] gay.... And they sent her home."
According to another spoiler account, @GamerVev, Martinez and his fellow cast members Logan Sampedro and Devin Walker-Molaghan complained about Mitchell to the producers. "Josh, Logan, and Devin all cried to production about Ashley & wanted her removed! It's sick how MEN can be intimidated by women and fake an outrage to get her kicked off. Ashley would've won this season & I said what I said!"
Again, those are unconfirmed reports from fan accounts. But after Mitchell's disqualification, cast member Nelson Thomas confirmed on Instagram Live that Mitchell and Martinez did have a fight. "Her and Josh got into it really, really bad and Ashley, unfortunately, said some really terrible things that you should never say to anybody, no matter who the person is or what they got going on in their life," Thomas said (via Heavy).
For her part, Mitchell took to Twitter after her dismissal and showed remorse. "I just want to thank everyone whose [sic] stuck with me throughout this all," she wrote. "Everyone knows I'm only mad at myself and it has been so hard to shake off the depression and anxiety since getting home. I have been taking anger management and reflecting alot. I love you yall so much."
"The Challenge: Spies, Lies, and Allies" still has five episodes left in Season 37, but Ashley definitely won't be taking home the $1 million.