DWTS ' Derek Hough Reveals He Once Didn't Recognize Celebrity Partner

DWTS ‘ Derek Hough Reveals He Once Didn’t Recognize Celebrity Partner

Originally appeared on E! Online

Derek Hough almost needed to rename his show to Dancing With the Assistants.

The Dancing With the Stars pro-turned-judge detailed an embarrassing moment in which he once accidentally mistook a celebrity’s personal assistant for the star he was paired with upon meeting them.

After a fan proposed a question for DWTS pros in a recent TikTok video, asking “if there has been a situation where one of you gets matched with a celebrity and when they walk in you don’t know who they are at the reveal,” Hough commented, “I’ve legit walked up to the PA of celebrity and said ‘are you ready to dance?'”

“My bad,” he joked, before noting, “Early days.”

Though Hough didn’t reveal which celeb he was referring to, some of his earlier partners included Jennie Garth, Shannon Elizabeth, Brooke Burke and Lil’ Kim when he appeared as pro on the dancing reality series from 2007 to 2016.

But clearly Hough isn’t too embarrassed about his missteps. This season, the 41-year-old—who joined the judge’s panel in 2020—had a different kind of faux pas when he accidentally called a celebrity contestant by the wrong name on air during the season 35 premiere on Sept. 15.

While Hough was giving feedback to The Bachelorette alum Tyler Cameron and his pro partner Sharna Burgess, he referred to Cameron as “Dylan.”

“Dylan, you have this Patrick Swayze aura about you,” Hough told Cameron. “You’re cool, masculine, just effortless. For me, the frame, aw mate, we got to expand it. Marrying your presence with the technique, the frame, the posture, you’re going to be fantastic.”

Although there is no celebrity named “Dylan” in the season 35 cast, it’s possible he was thinking of 2025 finalist Dylan Efron.

And like fans who poked fun at the mix-up online, Efron—who came in fourth place in season 34 with pro partner Daniella Karagach—hilariously joined in on the fun.

After all, the influencer commented on Cameron’s Sept. 16 Instagram video recapping his first experience in the DWTS ballroom, writing, “giving us Dylan’s a good name.”

For a closer look at the stars and their partners competing for the Mirrorball Trophy this year, keep reading…