Amber GerardJenna Dewan is trading her Step Up choreography for a ballroom partner.
The actress, known for her early career as a professional dancer and her long-running role on ABC’s The Rookie, is officially part of the newly revealed cast for Dancing with the Stars Season 35.
Her addition to the lineup has generated significant buzz, not only because of her dance background but also because of the natural expectation that a former professional dancer should have a built-in advantage in the competition. As this guide explains, that assumption may not hold up quite the way fans expect.
Below is a complete, up-to-date breakdown of Jenna Dewan’s DWTS Season 35 casting, her professional partner, her dance background, the rest of the Season 35 cast, and the premiere details for the new season.
Is Jenna Dewan Really Competing on DWTS Season 35?
Yes. Jenna Dewan’s participation was confirmed as part of the official Season 35 cast announcement, which aired on Good Morning America. ABC unveiled the full roster of celebrities on September 2, 2026, and Dewan was among the sixteen names introduced alongside their professional dance partners.
Dewan discussed the casting herself in a Good Morning America interview that same day, confirming she has already begun training and reflecting on how different competitive ballroom dance feels compared to the commercial and film choreography she built her career on.
Who Is Jenna Dewan’s Professional Dance Partner?
Jenna Dewan has been paired with professional dancer Val Chmerkovskiy for Season 35. Chmerkovskiy is one of the longest-tenured pros on the show and has previously danced with a range of celebrity partners across many prior seasons, making him one of the more experienced professionals in the current cast.
Jenna Dewan’s Dance Background: Why Fans Expect Big Things
Part of the reason Dewan’s casting has drawn so much attention is her dance résumé, which is more extensive than that of a typical DWTS contestant.
Before her breakout acting career, Dewan worked professionally as a backup dancer for major pop and R&B artists, including Janet Jackson, Missy Elliott, and Christina Aguilera.
She later became widely known to audiences through the Step Up film franchise, where her hip-hop and contemporary dance skills were central to her role.
Beyond film, Dewan has stayed connected to the dance world in other ways. She hosted the dance competition series World of Dance and has appeared as a guest judge on So You Think You Can Dance. These credits have fueled speculation that she could be a frontrunner this season.
However, Dewan herself has pushed back on the idea that her background gives her an automatic edge. In her Good Morning America interview, she explained that ballroom dancing is “a whole different style” from what she has done throughout her career, describing the process as partly “unlearning” old habits rather than simply building on existing skills.
She noted that even after a week of training, adjusting to ballroom technique has already proven to be a real challenge — a candid admission that suggests Season 35 may not be a walk in the park for her, despite her background.
Jenna Dewan’s Life and Career Outside the Ballroom
Jenna Dewan, 45, currently stars on ABC’s police procedural drama The Rookie, a role that has kept her visible to television audiences in recent years. Outside of acting, she is a mother of three: daughter Everly, whom she shares with ex-husband Channing Tatum, and son Callum and daughter Rhiannon, whom she shares with husband Steve Kazee.
According to Dewan, her The Rookie castmates have already expressed enthusiasm about supporting her DWTS run, with several reportedly planning to attend her performances live — a small but telling detail that speaks to how much interest her casting has generated even among her own colleagues.
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Full Dancing with the Stars Season 35 Cast List
Jenna Dewan is one of sixteen celebrities competing this season. The full cast and their professional partners, as announced on Good Morning America, includes:
- Jenna Dewan (The Rookie) with Val Chmerkovskiy
- Julia Stiles (Save the Last Dance) with Ezra Sosa
- Harry Shum Jr. (Grey’s Anatomy) with Jenna Johnson
- Tyler Cameron (Bachelor Nation) with Sharna Burgess
- Tatyana Ali (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air) with Jan Ravnik
- Giada De Laurentiis (celebrity chef) with Alan Bersten
- Taylor Hanson (Hanson) with Britt Stewart
- Conner Leavitt (The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives) with Adele Zaikman
- Ezra Frech (Paralympic gold medalist) with Daniella Karagach
- Amber Glenn (Olympic figure skater) with Pasha Pashkov
- Maura Higgins (Love Island) with Mark Ballas
- Ciara Miller (Summer House) with Brandon Armstrong
- Sarah Jane Nader (Love Thy Nader) with Hailey Bills
- Jackson Olson (Savannah Bananas) with Emma Slater
- Guillermo Rodriguez (Jimmy Kimmel Live!) with Witney Carson
- Connor Wood (comedian/podcaster) with Rylee Arnold
Two casting notes stand out this season. First, Sarah Jane Nader and her partner Hailey Bills mark the show’s third same-sex pairing in its history, following JoJo Siwa and Jenna Johnson in Season 30 and Gleb Savchenko and Shangela in Season 31.
Second, Hailey Bills and Adele Zaikman both join this season as newly elevated professional partners, with Bills promoted from the show’s dance troupe and Zaikman arriving after a win on a recent Dancing with the Stars spinoff competition.
When Does DWTS Season 35 Premiere?
Dancing with the Stars Season 35 kicks off with a two-night premiere event on Tuesday, September 15, and Wednesday, September 16, airing on both ABC and Disney+.
Who Are the Season 35 Hosts and Judges?
The show’s established team returns for Season 35:
- Hosts: Alfonso Ribeiro and Julianne Hough
- Judges: Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, and Derek Hough
Additionally, Season 34 contestant Andy Richter has taken over hosting duties for the official Dancing with the Stars podcast.
Will Jenna Dewan’s Dance Background Give Her an Edge?
It’s a fair question, and one that will likely follow Dewan throughout the competition. Judges on past seasons have sometimes scored contestants with professional dance or performance backgrounds under a stricter lens, expecting technical precision that casual viewers might not demand from a true beginner. Dewan’s own comments suggest she’s aware of this dynamic — by openly describing ballroom as unfamiliar territory requiring her to “unlearn” prior habits, she may be managing expectations before the season even begins.
Still, her comfort performing under pressure, paired with a partner as experienced as Val Chmerkovskiy, makes her one of the names worth watching as the season unfolds.
