There’s a method to Tatyana Ali’s dancing madness!
Week 8 of Dancing With the Stars paid tribute to Disney on Broadway, with the remaining couples performing routines inspired by iconic Disney productions.
After completing their individual dances, the couples split into two teams, with hosts Alfonso Ribeiro and Julianne Hough joining in on the fun.
Since Connor Wood and Tatyana Ali were at the bottom of the leaderboard following Horror Movie Night, they were named team captains and given the first picks for their respective teams.
Tatyana’s team, Slaytopia, consisted of Julia Stiles and Ezra Sosa, Amber Glenn and Pasha Pashkov, and Maura Higgins and Mark Ballas.
Alfonso also joined his TV little sister for their performance to “Zoo” from Zootopia 2.
Meanwhile, Connor selected Ezra Frech and Daniella Karagach, along with Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson.
Jenna Dewan and Val Chmerkovskiy were the final couple selected, rounding out Team Wildcats, which also featured Julianne Hough.
Given that the winning team would receive additional points toward the overall leaderboard, viewers questioned Tatyana’s selections, especially with frontrunners Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Dewan ending up on the opposing team.
If we’re looking at this strictly from a competitive standpoint, choosing the strongest dancers would seemingly make the most sense.
But for the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air actress, winning apparently wasn’t her only priority.
Tatyana responded to a viewer on Threads who shared a theory about why she selected the couples she did.
“Maybe I’m reading too much into it but she strikes me as someone who is very intentional about who she shares space with. And I think who she picked was a reflection of that,” the user wrote on Nov. 2.
To which Tatyana simply replied, “Very much so.”
ICYMI:
We can’t forget the additional context surrounding why Jan Ravnik’s partner might not have gone out of her way to dance alongside Val Chmerkovskiy. Willingly.
Following Super Bowl Night, when Jenna Johnson received tough feedback from Carrie Ann Inaba over her use of lifts, Val took to social media and joked that the ballroom almost witnessed a Fresh Prince moment.
The comment appeared to reference Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars following a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.
Of course, Tatyana famously played Will’s cousin Ashley Banks on the beloved sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
And then there’s Val’s brother, Maks Chmerkovskiy, who has publicly criticized Jan Ravnik’s casting as a professional dancer on the competition series.
While Tatyana hasn’t explicitly connected either situation to her team selections, her response on Threads certainly suggests there was more thought behind her picks than simply stacking her team with the highest-scoring couples.
Sometimes, it’s not just about winning.
It’s about the experience, the journey, and surrounding yourself with people who make that experience worthwhile.
Tatyana may not have made the most strategic decision from a competitive standpoint, but she seemingly made the one that felt right for her.
And considering her response, that choice was no accident.
