'Dancing with the Stars' gets 'Footloose,' 'Nasty' and 'Bad' in week 6
LOS ANGELES -- The nine remaining couples on "Dancing with the Stars" had some big (dance) shoes to fill this week.
The pairs have each been assigned an iconic dance routine from a film, musical, music video or live performance. The trick will be to make everything old seem new again.
They're all back with their original partners after last week's switch-up. And since no one was eliminated last week, they are combining scores and viewer's votes. Nine couples will be whittled down to eight.
Here's a recap of the sixth round of DWTS, from highest score to lowest:
Wanya Morris - 29 out of 30
Wanya and Lindsay may be saying "Bye Bye Bye" on the dance floor but there's no way they'll be saying goodbye to the competition. He gets to have a blast learning a classic live performance that his pals from NSYNC did on the VMAs back in 2000. They're classifying it as jazz... OK. But it is pure fun. Birthday boy and head judge Len Goodman told Wanya he's taken a big step forward toward the finale with this routine; Carrie Ann was on her feet and told Wanya he's on fire, and that he wasn't just in the moment, he was all around it; and Bruno Tonioli told Wanya there was nothing missing from his performance.
Paige VanZant - 28 out of 30
Stealing a line from host Tom Bergeron, Paige and Mark were able to make lemonade out of lemons this week. Their original assignment fell through after a song couldn't get cleared; instead, they got a jazz routine to the theme from "Austin Powers." It put them a couple of days behind, but the couple rallied like nobody's business. Len started with a grim look but psych! He said there was nothing about the routine he DIDN'T like; Carrie Ann loved the detail, energy and fun; and Bruno was happy to be taken back to the swinging '60s and thought the dance was smokin', baby!
Antonio Brown - 27 out of 30
This story started out a little rocky for Antonio and Sharna. He didn't take too kindly to her comment last week (switch-up week) that she thought Wanya was the frontrunner. Antonio said teammates don't stab each other in the back like that. The partners have a heart to heart and hit the reset button in a big way. And good thing because they have a tough dance! It's the jive, to the iconic prom number (and theme song) from "Footloose." He brings full-on Kevin Bacon style and energy and brings down the house. Carrie Ann thought he killed it; Len reminded him the competition is as much about WILL as SKILL and he's got the right attitude; and Bruno praised him for being the leading man of the number and staying our center of attention.
Nyle DiMarco - 25 out of 30
Nyle shaves his beard, dons a full green prosthetic face mask and giant fake teeth to channel Jim Carrey's 1994 character from "The Mask." He's dancing on cloud nine these days after several weeks of great performances and great comments from the judges. Confidence is not an issue with this guy. In fact, he likes to think that his main competition isn't any of the other celebrities, it's pro dancer Val! Bruno loved the explosive, kooky energy and slapstick interpretation; Len also complimented Nyle and Peta on the performance aspect; but all the judges thought (for the first time), Nyle let the dance get away from him a little bit.
Jodie Sweetin - 25 out of 30
Ouch! Jodie had quite a scare with a twisted ankle. She and Keo were channeling the powerful music video "Try" from Pink and it's filled with scary lifts and lots of acrobatics (as well as dance steps)! Early in the week Jodie gets whacked in the nose pretty badly but a little ice and she's back in there. Then later she's pushing herself on a very tough, physical move that has her lifting Keo and her ankle collapses. She's rushed to the hospital, crying "I don't want to be done!" Luckily nothing is fractured, and the doc says it's up to Jodie how far she wants to push it. And she wants to push it all the way, saying (nearly) broken bones won't prevent her from performing. Len thought the routine was performed well by both dancers; Carrie Ann said they turned aggression into an artistic, dynamic dance; and Bruno called it demanding both physically and emotionally and a wonderful interpretation.
PHOTOS: 'Dancing With the Stars' Week 6: Famous Dances
Ginger Zee - 24 out of 30
Ginger really really wants to break out of the pack of "8" scores from the judges. She's dying for a "9" or a "10." Alas, this is not the week. Ginger and Val take us all the way back to 1986 and the iconic hip hop music video from Janet Jackson "Nasty." Now, Ginger's super wholesome. That's why we love her. So she really has to push it to get "Nasty" like Miss Jackson. The judges praised the clean routine but all thought she needed to dig a little deeper and get a little more "Nasty" to really do justice to the famous dance.
Von Miller - 24 out of 30
Von Miller practically squeals like a little boy when he learns he's dancing a jazz routine to Michael Jackson's "Bad." He's always been a huge fan and is thrilled to learn some official MJ moves. Troupe dancer Shannon actually worked with Michael, so he knows just how to do those signature Jackson hip thrusts, spins and turns. Carrie Ann thought he embodied Michael, but with Von's own spin; Len called him "Thriller Miller."
Kim Fields - 24 out of 30
This 46-year-old mother of two knows she's demanding a lot of her body with this competition but she is not slowing down. Even on doctor's orders! Seems she might have some stress fractures in her legs and the doc advised her to take it easy. Kim said child, please! I've had two kids! I can handle anything! She dives into rehearsal with Sasha for a very fast, very fun version of "You Can't Stop the Beat" from the musical "Hairspray." Len thought they captured the fun of the song, and included lots of jive elements; Bruno was bounding up and down and couldn't stop dancing; and Carrie Ann let Kim know she is one to watch in this competition.
Doug Flutie - 21 out of 30
Doug and Karina take us back to the 2008 Oscar-winning movie "Slumdog Millionaire" and are introduced to Bollywood. I say introduced because even pro dancer Karina admits she's not familiar with choreographing a Bollywood routine. Both stars take to the fun of the style and Doug performs better than he has yet this season. Carrie makes mention of that, telling Doug he finally looked like he's enjoying himself on the dance floor and not just going through the motions.
SPOILER ALERT
Tom Bergeron announces three couples are in jeopardy: Doug and Karina, Paige and Mark, and Von and Witney.
Without much drama, we learn Doug has performed his last dance.
Two big announcements for next week: we'll see a team dance (and it will be men vs. women), and it will be a DOUBLE elimination!
