Julianne Hough is ready to jump into her role as co-host of Dancing with the Stars — but that doesn't mean she didn't initially have reservations about joining the show as a dancer.
On Thursday's episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show, the pro dancer, 34, recalled initially turning down a gig on the dance competition series at age 18 "because I was like, 'You know, I want to be a respected actress and singer. I don't want to be on a competition show, you know, dancing.'"
"I was like, you know, this is what I want to do. This is my path," she told host Kelly Clarkson. "And then I was like, well I guess it's kind of a good thing to be able to have that as my day job."
Hough's decision turned out to be life-changing because the show "blew up" after she was cast in 2007. She added, "It was so wild. I mean, like overnight, I had just finished high school, basically and then I got on the show."
Hough left the show in 2009 and later returned as a judge for six seasons from 2014 to 2021.
"I was on the show and you know, I was a dancer first," she shared of the series, which moved from ABC to Disney+ in 2022. "Won my first two seasons back to back and then came back as a judge and that was one of the most fulfilling moments and then, of course, to come back now as a host it just really does seem full-circle."
Hough praised the previous hosts of the show, including Tyra Banks and Tom Bergeron as well as her current cohost Alfonso Ribeiro.
"I just have to put it out first and foremost like, Tom Bergeron from the beginning when I was on at 18, was always the most kind, most beautiful soul," she shared. "And then you know all the co-hosts previously. Tyra [Banks], and now Alfonso and I are going to be hosting, so this is just going to be like coming back home."
Last month, ABC announced that the actress and professional dancer would be returning to the competition series as a co-host alongside Ribeiro. The announcement came three days after news broke that Banks would exit the series following three seasons as host.
Banks, 49, announced that she was leaving DWTS while chatting with TMZ on March 16.
"I feel it's really time for me to focus on my business and my entrepreneurship, and also producing more TV — but behind the scenes," Banks said in an interview with the outlet. "I think it's time to graduate from the dance floor to the stock market floor ... from the ballroom to the boardroom!"
When asked to clarify if she was indeed stepping away from DWTS, Banks — who also served as an executive producer on the series — continued, "Don't you think it's time? Yeah, I think it's time. I'm an entrepreneur at heart ... I think my heart, my soul, is into my business, it's also into producing new TV ... But, I really, really want to focus on my business, and you can't do that hosting a show."
Banks first joined DWTS as a host during the show's season 29 in 2020, replacing Bergeron and Erin Andrews. Bergeron, 67, had previously hosted the reality dance competition alongside a variety of co-hosts since its premiere in 2005, while Andrews, 44, joined Bergeron as a co-host in 2014.
In July 2022, it was announced that Ribeiro would be co-hosting season 31 of DWTS alongside Banks. It also marked the first season of the series moved to stream on Disney+ instead of airing live on ABC, where it first debuted.
Season 32 of Dancing with the Stars is set to premiere this fall on Disney+.
