‘Dancing With the Stars’ Premiere Recap: James Van Der Beek Crushes the Competition

The long-awaited season 28 of Dancing With the Stars has arrived! The mystery partners were revealed during the Monday, September 16, premiere and the drama began from moment one. Making headlines earlier in the day, Christie Brinkley had to leave the show after breaking her arm during rehearsals. While the model, 65, had been practicing for three weeks with partner Val Chmerkovskiy, daughter Sailor Brinkley-Cook stepped in with three days to rehearse the foxtrot to “Uptown Girl,” the song that Christie called her “theme song.” (Christie starred in her Billy Joel’s music video in 1983. She two married two years later, but split in 1994.) Ahead of the premiere, the Christie Brinkley Authentic Skincare founder shared an emotional post on Instagram about her injury. “I just broke my arm into a 1000 pieces requiring surgery with a metal plate and screws to hold my arm together. Only something like that cold stop me from continuing to dance with my wonderful coach. I was having a blast,” she wrote next to a photo of her 21-year-old daughter in her leotard. In fact, her daughter fit perfectly in the leotard she had been wearing. During the episode, the video of her injury was shown and the iconic model cheered on her daughter from the audience wearing a large cast.

Despite her lack of practice time, Sailor impressed judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tunoli and Len Goodman. That said, that wouldn’t be an easy task this season. All three judges definitely had higher standards this season and it showed in the scoring. The lowest score of the night was an 11(!) while the highest was a 21.

See the full list of partners below, then scroll through the gallery for the full list of scores. Dancing With the Stars airs on ABC Mondays at 8 p.m. ET. Hannah Brown and Alan Bersten Kel Mitchell and Witney Carson Kate Flannery and Pasha Pashkov Lamar Odom and Peta Murgatroyd Lauren Alaina and Gleb Savchenko Sailor Brinkley-Cook and Val Chmerkovskiy Karamo Brown and Jenna Johnson Ray Lewis and Cheryl Burke Mary Wilson and Brandon Armstrong Ally Brooke and Sasha Farber Sean Spicer and Lindsay Arnold James Van Der Beek and Emma Slater

The long-awaited season 28 of Dancing With the Stars has arrived! The mystery partners were revealed during the Monday, September 16, premiere and the drama began from moment one. Making headlines earlier in the day, Christie Brinkley had to leave the show after breaking her arm during rehearsals. While the model, 65, had been practicing for three weeks with partner Val Chmerkovskiy, daughter Sailor Brinkley-Cook stepped in with three days to rehearse the foxtrot to “Uptown Girl,” the song that Christie called her “theme song.” (Christie starred in her Billy Joel’s music video in 1983. She two married two years later, but split in 1994.) Ahead of the premiere, the Christie Brinkley Authentic Skincare founder shared an emotional post on Instagram about her injury. “I just broke my arm into a 1000 pieces requiring surgery with a metal plate and screws to hold my arm together. Only something like that cold stop me from continuing to dance with my wonderful coach. I was having a blast,” she wrote next to a photo of her 21-year-old daughter in her leotard. In fact, her daughter fit perfectly in the leotard she had been wearing. During the episode, the video of her injury was shown and the iconic model cheered on her daughter from the audience wearing a large cast.

Despite her lack of practice time, Sailor impressed judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tunoli and Len Goodman. That said, that wouldn’t be an easy task this season. All three judges definitely had higher standards this season and it showed in the scoring. The lowest score of the night was an 11(!) while the highest was a 21.

See the full list of partners below, then scroll through the gallery for the full list of scores. Dancing With the Stars airs on ABC Mondays at 8 p.m. ET. Hannah Brown and Alan Bersten Kel Mitchell and Witney Carson Kate Flannery and Pasha Pashkov Lamar Odom and Peta Murgatroyd Lauren Alaina and Gleb Savchenko Sailor Brinkley-Cook and Val Chmerkovskiy Karamo Brown and Jenna Johnson Ray Lewis and Cheryl Burke Mary Wilson and Brandon Armstrong Ally Brooke and Sasha Farber Sean Spicer and Lindsay Arnold James Van Der Beek and Emma Slater

The former Bachelorette performed a high-energy cha cha to "I Want to Dance With Somebody." Carrie Ann said that while Alan was dragging her around in the beginning, she had great form. They were given a score of 20/30.

While dancing the tango to "Sucker," the Good Burger star showed he had potential. The judges pointed out his struggles and Len noted out that he lost his frame throughout. They scored a 16/30.

The Office alum, 55, danced the cha cha with new pro Pasha to "Works Hard for the Money." Len and Carrie Ann told her that she needed to straighten her legs while dancing but were very impressed with her positive attitude. She received a 15/30.

Peta made her return with Lamar and the pair danced the foxtrot to "Feelin' Good." Len and Bruno agreed that the foxtrot wasn't his style and said he needed more "smoothness" and "elegance." Carrie Ann, however, commended him for owning his height. They scored an 11/30.

The American Idol runnerup danced the cha cha to "Man, I Feel Like a Woman" and had strong chemistry with Gleb. Carrie Ann gave Gleb a ton of credit for the routine and complimented Lauren on being loose in her movements. They scored a 19/30.

After only three days of rehearsal, Sailor rocked a perfect posture during a foxtrot to "Uptown Girl." Len said the dance was "a bit stompy," but everyone agreed that she did remarkable after such a short amount of time. They scored an 18/30.

Dancing the salsa to "Juice," Karamo and Jenna got a great reaction from the audience but Len said that it was "a bit disappointing" and Carrie Ann called it "underwhelming." They scored a 17/30.

It was impossible not to smile during Cheryl and Ray's super sexy salsa to "Hot in Herre." Carrie Ann said the performance was "pretty damn good" and told him he "turned this audience on." Len agreed that he has "great potential." They earned a score of 15/30.

Brandon and Mary, 75, danced a slow and romantic foxtrot to "Baby Love." Carrie Ann said the singer was "built to foxtrot," but did have "a few mistakes." Len, also 75, said he'd love to do a foxtrot like that. "A supreme is always a supreme," Bruno added. They scored a 17/30.

Dancing the cha cha to Fifth Harmony's "Work From Home," Ally and Sasha's sexy dance didn't impress Len. Bruno loved her "sense of attack" but warned her not to anticipate the beat. They scored a 16/30.

After dancing the salsa to "Spice of Your Life," Bruno said there were "some elements" that were well done and called the routine "strangely entertaining." Carrie Ann said he was "off beat most of the dance," but he had fun; Len agreed. The duo received a score of 12/30.

James blew everyone way with his tango to "Whatever It Takes" with Emma. The judges were beyond thrilled with his charisma and his ability to stay "in character and in control." They scored a 21/30, making their score the best of the night.