Giada De Laurentiisis finally trading in her kitchen for a ballroom floor.
As the Food Network star laces up her shoesto join proAlan BerstenonDancing With the Stars‘upcomingseason 35, she revealed that her 18-year-old daughterJadeinspired her to finally take the leap.
“Funny enough,Dancing With the Starshas come to me maybe 10 times over the years,” De Laurentiis exclusively told E! News in a joint interview with BerstenfollowingtheDWTScast reveal at Disney HQ in New York CityonSept. 2. “And I was always like, ‘No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.'”
With her sous chef starting her first semester in college, the 56-year-old knew season 35—which kicks off with a two-night premiere Sept. 15 and 16 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC—was her time to shine.
“This time, I thought, with my daughter pushing me and with my daughter out of my house,” she explained, “This is a really good time for me to go on a new adventure and push myself to do something I’ve never done.”
read
Dancing With the Stars Season 35 Cast Revealed
The celebrity chefplayfully teased, “And hopefully, I won’t regret it!”
In fact, De Laurentiis—who shares the teen with ex-husbandTodd Thompson—admitted that she even tried to back out, much to Jade’s chagrin.
“I tried to get out of it,” she said. “Right before I dropped her off, I was like, ‘I can’t. This is just too much.’ And she’s like, ‘Mom! Pull up your boots and let’s go. Get it together.'”
So, she committed to cooking up this new adventure.And theGiada at Homealum emphasized that the dance competition is completely out of her wheelhouse.
“It’s totally different,” she shared. “I do not have a stove. I do not have any of my tricks and any of my tools in my toolbox. So this is way, way out of my comfort zone.”
But she’s also up for the challenge, especially with Bersten—who placed fifth withElaine Hendrixlast season—by her side.
“I already learned a lot and I already have a lot of sore muscles, muscles I didn’t even know I did,” De Laurentiis jokingly added. “I’m trying to tell myself even at this stage, you can do something new. You can conquer something new.”
Meanwhile, the pro couldn’t be more excited for the opportunity. He exclaimed to De Laurentiis during the interview, “You’re gonna learn so much. It’s gonna be amazing.”
As De Laurentiis and Bersten warm up forDancing With the Starsseason 35, keep reading to see all the pairs vying for the Mirrorball Trophy.
Disney/Andrew Eccles
Disney/Andrew Eccles
“Looks are not indicative of being in shape,” Ciara exclusively told E! News in June. “I do huff and puff going up the stairs, so I gotta get back into the gym and work on my stamina.”
“I have a vision board and I redo it every year,” she told E! News in May. “This year is the first year that I stayed at home by myself on New Year’s Eve. I did not go out at all. I made myself a bowl of pasta and a glass of red wine and I redid my vision board for the year. Dancing With the Stars was already on it from the year before. However, I added five more Dancing With the Stars on the board.”
