In a column for Slate, culture writer Scaachi Koul argues that despite a crowded field on the 35th season of Dancing With the Stars, the most compelling contestant already bowed out when Julia Stiles was voted off the show after eight weeks.
The elimination aired on Monday night following a schedule shift to accommodate midterm election coverage. Koul notes that she tuned in this fall specifically because of the show’s recent renaissance driven by younger viewers, drawing in reality television personalities such as Ciara Miller from Summer House and Maura Higgins from The Traitors. Yet the casting of Stiles served as a distinct pull for millennials who grew up watching her late-nineties and early-two-thousands peak.
Stiles holds a unique cultural footprint regarding dance despite never training professionally or considering herself a dancer. Her role as a high school student balancing ballet and hip-hop in 2001’s Save the Last Dance remains a touchstone for millennials, even though a body double handled much of the film’s choreography. That cinematic history added an amusing proposition to watching her tackle a ballroom competition twenty-five years later.
Approaching the Ballroom With Earnest Intensity
According to the column, Stiles approached the competition with a serious, studious demeanor that separated her from contestants looking merely to cut loose. Rather than wearing a standard performer smile, she frequently displayed a look of deep concentration and appeared genuinely crestfallen during harsh judge critiques. That visible effort endeared her further to viewers tracking her journey.
The high point of her run arrived during weeks five and six, when her routines doubled as extended homages to her past film work. She re-created the audition scene from Save the Last Dance, complete with her partner interaction, followed by an emotional performance dedicated to her late 10 Things I Hate About You co-star, Heath Ledger. That tribute featured appearances on the floor by former cast members including Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Gabrielle Union.
The Reality TV Wish-Fulfillment Fantasy
Koul likens the actress’s trajectory on the program to the old MTV reality series Made, functioning as a wish-fulfillment narrative where an actress gains confidence through weekly rehearsals. While acknowledging that Stiles stood little chance of beating competitors with professional dance backgrounds like Jenna Dewan or Harry Shum Jr., the author admits to hoping for a few more weeks in the competition.
Ultimately, the elimination matters little in the grand scheme of television contests. As the column concludes, Stiles already lived out her own teenage-dance movie fantasy where the journey eclipses the destination, leaving an audience to watch a familiar millennial icon write a new chapter.
