Dancing With The Stars standouts Joey Graziadei and Jenna Johnson decided to honor former DWTS duo Riker Lynch and Allison Holker during the show’s monumental 500th episode Tuesday (Nov. 12), and it’s safe to say that they did not disappoint with their passion-packed performance.
For those who did not tune in, during the 500th episode of Dancing With The Stars, “each couple paid tribute to past memorable dances while adding their own unique reinterpretation and flair for Season 33.”
As mentioned, Joey and Jenna decided to recreate Riker and Allison’s Season 20 Contemporary routine to “Work Song” by Hozier.
And despite receiving a lower score than the week before, the routine was as exceptional as could be.
If you need a refresher, all of Joey and Jenna’s Dancing With The Stars scores so far are as follows:
- DWTS Premiere — Cha Cha to Tyler Hubbard’s “Dancin’ In The Country” (21/30)
- “Oscars Night” — Rumba to Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s “Shallow” from A Star Is Born (22/30)
- “Soul Train Night” — Jive to The Isley Brothers’ “Shout” (34/40)
- “Hair Metal Night” — Tango to Scorpions’ “Rock You Like A Hurricane” (36/40)
- “Dedications Night” — Viennese Waltz to Teddy Swims’ “Lose Control” (36/40)
- “Disney Night” — Samba to “Trashin’ The Camp” from Tarzan (25/30)
- “Halloween Nightmares Night” — Argentine Tango to “Ramalama (Bang Bang)” by Róisín Murphy (29/30)
- DWTS 500th Episode — Contemporary to “Work Song” by Hozier (28/30)
With Joey and Jenna paying tribute to Riker and Allison, we couldn’t help but wonder what the previous DWTS pair had to say about the routine.
Fortunately, Jenna has us covered, revealing in a post-show interview with Good Morning America an oh-so sweet conversation she had with Allison shortly after the dance.
‘Allison Holker Did Message Me’
When asked whether Riker and Allison had reacted to the routine just yet, Jenna spilled the tea:
“Allison Holker did message me, and she was like, ‘I’m so honored that you guys picked our dance,’ and it was really fun to even watch it back.”
She continued, with an ear-to-ear grin:
“Riker Lynch, I think, was one of the best male contestants we’ve ever had, and the song was so perfect and beautiful. We really wanted to do Contemporary, so it was just a perfect storm.”
A “perfect storm” it was indeed, earning a high enough score to coast their way to next week’s semi-final.
That leaves the duo fighting for the coveted Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy alongside Chandler Kinney and Brandon Armstrong, Ilona Maher and Alan Bersten, Stephen Nedoroscik and Rylee Arnold, and Danny Amendola and Witney Carson.
With frontrunners Chandler and Brandon still in the competition, do Joey and Jenna have a shot at taking home the Mirrorball Trophy?
After all, ousted pro Emma Slater thinks Joey and Jenna have the victory in the bag.
With only two episodes left in Season 33, we’ll soon find out — the remaining episodes of Dancing With the Stars air Tuesdays on ABC or Disney Plus.