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There's something unspoken that happens the moment the lights dim and the first note of a Disney score fills the ballroom. Every contestant on Dancing with the Stars has that one movie—the one that made them believe in transformation, in magic, in the kind of story where the underdog rises and the impossible becomes real. And here's the thing: those choices tell us more about who these dancers are than any interview ever could.
Derek Hough has never been shy about it. The Lion King. To anyone who's watched him command a stage for over a decade, this makes perfect sense. Simba's journey from wide-eyed cub to sovereign who has to reckon with his father's legacy? That's not just a story—that's Derek's entire career arc distilled into 90 minutes of animated perfection. The resilience it takes to fall, regroup, and come back stronger? That's the choreographer's cheat code right there. When facing critiques that could break a lesser dancer, you bet The Lion King has played on repeat in his mind.
But here's where it gets interesting—the divide between the veterans and the fresh faces says everything about how dance evolves.
The newer generation gravitates toward Moana and Frozen. Not because they're superior films, but because they represent something different: self-determination without the prince, identity that's earned rather than inherited. Jojo Siwa, for example, doesn't need a kingdom to validate her. She walks onto that floor knowing exactly who she is. Moana speaks to dancers who grew up being told they could be both fierce and gentle, powerful and vulnerable—all at once.
The beauty is in the range. When the cast spans from classic enthusiasts to modern-day explorers, you get choreography that can pivot from elegant waltzes rooted in fairy tale romance to street-style numbers that'll make you forget you're watching a network competition. That's not an accident—it's what happens when a room full of performers Drew from different emotional wells.
As season 33 heats up, I'm watching for the moments when these Disney connections reveal themselves in the dances. When someone breaks into an unexpected contemporary, you can almost trace it back to the story that made them believe movement could matter. That's the real magic—not the sequins and pyrotechnics, but the fact that these performers found their calling through the same stories that made the rest of us believe in happily ever after.
Pick your Disney movie. I'll show you who you are on that dance floor.
