Jan Ravnik is not taking his return to Dancing With the Stars as a season 35 pro dancer for granted.
“I have never watched this show in my life,” Jan, 31, revealed to The Hollywood Reporter in an interview published on Wednesday, September 16. “It wasn’t on my [mood] board. And I’m still a little bit shocked that I’m back.”
Jan joined the DWTS pro troupe for season 34 in 2025, after he was scouted by famed executive producer Deena Katz while he was performing as a backup dancer as part of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in 2024.
His casting proved to be controversial, in part because he has no prior ballroom experience. Veteran DWTS pro Maks Chmerkovskiy made headlines in October 2025 when he suggested that Jan had “absolutely no business being a pro on Dancing With the Stars.”
“There’s zero foundation technique, quality, understanding of the partnership,” Maks, 46, said on the “Penthouse With Peta” podcast at the time. “Bro, I’m getting emotional. It is absurd, and this is unreal how blind we have to be and God forbid say what’s obviously there.”
In the end, Jan and his celebrity partner, Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Jen Affleck, finished season 34 in ninth place after their week seven elimination.
“Just try to ignore the background noise happening around you. I learned that I’m a very patient person, which I didn’t know,” Jan told THR of what he has learned since joining DWTS. “It’s just to find ways to humble yourself, but still love yourself at the same time. This job, you need to humble yourself a lot.”
The pro dancer stressed that he’s discovered “a lot of things on the production side” that he’s carrying into his second season on DWTS, in which he is paired with Fresh Prince of Bel-Air actress Tatyana Ali.
“All the pros, when they are coming into a show, they are [on] troupe before, so you’re learning the background; how the camera works, how the music department works, how they’re assigning your styles,” he explained. “When I went in, I just went with the flow. And now, I’m thinking back, I’m like, why the f*** did I have cha cha for week four on this song — I didn’t know that I was able to maybe talk with my partner and switch the song, or because I knew the things that she couldn’t do, but they were still pushing for the style, and I was like, ‘Oh s***!’”
He continued, “But now, this time around, the first thing that I did, I went to a studio with Tatyana. We went through a lot of styles, frame, out of frame, the fast speed, so I know what she’s good at. So then, at least if the style is coming, I can be like, ‘Hey, this is a suicide. We are not doing that for week two. We’re gonna do [this] for week five.’ Now I’m more comfortable, and put my foot down and be like, ‘Hey, we’re not doing that.’”
Following the conclusion of Dancing With the Stars two-night premiere on Wednesday, the Emmy-winning competition show will air on ABC and Disney+ Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET.
