Jenna Dewan has defended her casting on "Dancing With the Stars" Season 35 after fans criticised the decision, arguing that her professional dance background gives her an unfair advantage over the show's amateur contestants. Dewan, a former Janet Jackson backup dancer and star of the 2006 film "Step Up", insisted her experience does not extend to ballroom technique, telling Entertainment Weekly that ballroom dancing is "a new technique, brand new technique" requiring her to unlearn old habits.

Dewan, who is paired with professional dancer and "DWTS" veteran Val Chmerkovskiy, said the mismatch between her existing skills and the show's requirements actually makes her more nervous, not less, as ballroom "feels really foreign" to her. Chmerkovskiy backed his partner, arguing the show is about "the human experience" rather than pure technical ability, while acknowledging her talent brings "incredible expectation". The wider Season 35 cast includes Julia Stiles, Harry Shum Jr., Tatyana Ali and Giada De Laurentiis, with the series returning on 15 September on ABC and Disney+.