“Dancing With the Stars” delivered another surprise-filled week, complete with emotional performances, fierce dance-offs and a shocking elimination.
Jenna Dewan and her controversial partner, Maks Chmerkovskiy, also took the ballroom floor.
Amber Glenn and Pasha Pashkov embraced the drama of Evanescence’s “Bring Me to Life” with an intense paso doble. The 2004 track won the Grammy for Best Hard Rock Performance.
Bruno Tonioli said the routine had “everything a paso doble should be: power, beauty, passion and Pasha’s pecs,” as he gestured toward the shirtless professional dancer. The judges awarded the pair 28 out of 30 points.
Despite battling a painful rib injury, Maura Higgins and Mark Ballas performed an Argentine tango to Sisqó’s “Thong Song,” which received a 2001 Grammy nomination for Best R&B Song.
Carrie Ann Inaba called the performance a “work of art,” while Tonioli praised Higgins’ “excellent” poise. Together, the judges gave them 27 out of 30.
Dewan and Chmerkovskiy brought Janet Jackson’s “All For You” to life through a jazz routine. The song won the 2002 Grammy for Best Dance Recording.
The performance carried special meaning for Dewan, who previously appeared as a backup dancer in two of Jackson’s music videos and joined the singer on her All For You Tour in the early 2000s.
Derek Hough applauded Dewan for inspiring “generations of dancers,” while Inaba said it “hit different seeing” the actress perform that particular routine. The pair finished with 28 out of 30 points.
Tatyana Ali and Jan Ravnik took on a tango set to the Black Eyed Peas’ “Boom Boom Pow,” the 2010 Grammy winner for Best Short Form Music Video.
Tonioli said Ali transformed into “a Tarantino leading lady” during the number. Their 27 out of 30 marked the duo’s best score of the season.
Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson performed a salsa to Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ “Die With a Smile,” which won the 2025 Grammy for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. Johnson danced despite breaking her nose during Monday’s rehearsal.
Inaba fought back tears while praising the “heart” Shum Jr. brought to the routine. She said he had delivered “the moment that is ‘Dancing With the Stars.’” The performance earned 29 out of 30 points.
The episode also marked the return of the much-feared dance-offs. Couples were matched against one another in head-to-head battles, performing the same style to the same song in hopes of earning bonus points for their overall judges’ scores.
Shum Jr. and Johnson were protected from the twist after their scores from the previous week and their cumulative season total secured immunity. As a result, they automatically received the available bonus points.
In the first showdown, Glenn and Pashkov faced fellow athletes Frech and Karagach in a rumba set to “The Boy Is Mine.” Brandy and Monica performed their 1998 hit live during the broadcast.
The judges struggled to select a winner. Hough called it “one of the most satisfying dance-offs” he had seen, while Tonioli highlighted the couples’ “sportsmanship” and their willingness to “celebrate each other’s talents.”
Glenn and Pashkov ultimately prevailed, adding two points to their total and ending the night with a perfect 30 out of 30.
Dewan and Chmerkovskiy then went head-to-head with Ali and Ravnik in a cha-cha set to “The Middle,” the 2018 hit by Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey. Morris performed the song live from the ballroom.
Inaba and Tonioli both acknowledged that the two routines were difficult to compare, describing the decision as “comparing apples and oranges.” They awarded the victory to Dewan and Chmerkovskiy, raising their score to 30 out of 30.
The third dance-off pitted Wood and Arnold against Higgins and Ballas in another cha-cha, this time set to Sheryl Crow’s “All I Want to Do.” Crow performed the breezy 1994 hit live on the show.
Hough called the matchup “really interesting in the best possible way,” but Inaba criticized Wood and Arnold for incorporating “country line dancing” into a routine that was meant to be a cha-cha.
Higgins and Ballas won the battle, bringing their final score to 29 out of 30.
New episodes of “DWTS” air Tuesdays at 8 p.m. Eastern on ABC and Disney+, with episodes streaming on Hulu the following day.
For more Page Six coverage of “Dancing With the Stars,” click here.