Jenna Johnson Disney/Andrew Eccles Share on Facebook Share on X Share to Flipboard Send an Email Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Print the Article Post a Comment Logo text Dancing with the Stars professional dancer Jenna Johnson knows how to entice an audience. That's partly why she's been a mainstay of the reality competition series' recurring cast since 2018. After debuting her first season as a part of the pro dancer slate in 2016 with season 23, Johnson returned to the cast for the long haul for the one-of-its-kind all-athletes installment of DWTS and nabbed the mirrorball trophy alongside Olympic figure skater Adam Rippon. Since that 2018 win, she's appeared on the show in consecutive seasons, only missing out on season 31 as she was pregnant with she and her husband (and fellow DWTS pro dancer) Val Chmerkovskiy's son. Now with the show's landmark 34th season, Johnson is fresh off her second win, having nabbed the top placement last year with The Bachelor star Joey Graziadei. Related Stories Business Nexstar and Sinclair Won't Air Jimmy Kimmel's Return, Impacting 66 ABC Stations TV How to Watch 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' Online Without Cable for Free "I will never forget that," she tells The Hollywood Reporter of her win with Graziadei. "You don't get partners like that often, [where] it just feels so meant to be. It just meant so much to me." In between rehearsals with her season 34 partner, The Goonies and The Lost Boys star Corey Feldman, Johnson reflects on the premiere of the new season, the show's growing virality and which celebrities she'd like to be partnered up with on DWTS in the future. *** Corey Feldman is an established actor. What was your reaction when he walked in the room and you learned he was going to be your partner? He is an icon, and when he came in with the sunglasses on, I was like, "Oh yes, he means business." One of my favorite things about Corey is his energy, and he comes into the room with that charisma and that energy. I really love that, and I want to make sure that I highlight that [in] each dance that we do, because it is so special about him. He's really electric on the dance floor and in our rehearsal space. Jenna Johnson and Corey Feldman Disney/Eric McCandless What was it like hitting the stage with Corey Feldman for the first time last Tuesday? I'm always curious how my partner is going to respond in that situation, because it is really intimidating and so scary to go live. But I was just so impressed with Corey. I mean, he is a performer. He is a showman, and he put on a full performance [on Tuesday] night. I was just so proud of him. I love that he showed up, he was giving facials and energy, and that is everything that I asked for. As the reigning winning pro dancer, do you feel pressure going into a new season? How do you approach going into a new season with a new partner after having just won? I definitely am grateful to have that title and be the reigning champion, but I approach every season with a clean slate. It's a new experience, a new partner, a new journey, so I just really want to be focused on that. But it has been so much fun to have my past partner, Joey Graziadei, in the ballroom. He's the host of the Dancing with the Stars podcast, so it's been really fun to still see him on set and be like, "Oh my goodness, that happened." But yeah, it's definitely a different approach each season and with a new partner. This season your niece, Hailey Bills, joined the troupe. You were her mentor on Dancing with the Stars Junior, but what has it been like sharing this experience on Dancing with the Stars together so far? It is truly a dream come true for our family. The fact that I not only get to have my husband [Val Chmerkovskiy] on set, which is very niche and not a lot of people get to experience that, but to then have my beautiful niece, and this has been her dream, to be on Dancing with the Stars one day. And to even be going to rehearsals together and looking over and seeing her, I'm just so proud. I cannot wait for the world to get to see her dance and perform and fall in love with her. My sister, who's Hailey's mom, was in the audience [last Tuesday] night, and all of us just couldn't stop crying. It was just like, "How did we get here, these two girlies from Utah?" And I'm not sure we've ever had that sort of relationship [between aunt and niece] be able to perform on the show together, so it's very special. Joey Graziadei and Jenna Johnson Disney/Eric McCandless Previously, you won the athletes season, but that was a condensed [four-week long] season. What did it mean for you to win in a full regular season with Joey last year? He's also the first Bachelor to win Dancing with the Stars. It meant the world. Because, yes, I won the athletes season, but it was that shortened season, so I was hungry for that 10-week win. And then to be paired with somebody like Joey, who was