Alfonso Ribeiro finally busted out the Carlton on 'Dancing With The Stars' this week, and it was perfect, literally!
This week on Dancing With The Stars, each contestant took a stroll down memory lane to look back at the most important year in their lives to get inspiration for this week's dance.
For Alfonso Ribeiro, the years he chose as his most memorable were the ones during which he starred opposite Will Smith on the hit sitcom The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air. And, to honor that character and that time in his life, he busted out an adaptation of the Carlton, a fun, goofy dance his Fresh Prince character performed during the show that became one of the hallmarks of the role.
In a pre-recorded segment played before the dance, Alfonso talked about how the role of Carlton ended up making it hard to have a career outside of Fresh Prince, but he came to realize the impact the role had on his life, and on the lives of those who loved the character.
And, when he finally busted the move that America had been waiting too see all night, he was certainly rewarded for his efforts. The judges awarded him and his partner Witney Carson 10s across the board for the show's only perfect score.
But the Carlton was just one of many striking performances from the evening, with each of the stars choosing a wide range of interesting and powerful pieces to set their dances too.
Some of the dances were emotional, like Bethany Mota's performance that recalled her struggle against cyberbullying and the talented Lea Thompson's tribute to her late father, while others were fun expressions of joy, and sensuality, like Janel Parrish's seductive dance with Val Chmerkovskiy, or the Carlton.
Meanwhile, other dances saw Sadie Robertson dressed up like a duck getting 'hunted' by Mark Ballas, decked out in camo and a long, fake, Duck Dynasty beard. Yes, that also happened.
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Here are the best, the worst, and the weirdest moments from tonight's Dancing With The Stars
THE BEST
Janel Parrish Gets Passionate
It's relatively obvious that Janel and her pro partner Val Chmerkovskiy have chemistry, but this dance brings it to a whole new level. The dance gave off the constant impression that the two just wanted to start making out any moment. It was like the whole first season of Moonlighting compacted into two minutes.
Bethany Mota Made Julianne Hough Cry
Youtube sensation Bethany Mota performed a beautiful dance that showed to the world that she's learned to ignore the critics and haters and to love herself. But the really touching moment came when Julianne Hough couldn't keep her tears from flowing because she was so moved. Once someone starts crying, everyone starts crying.
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Alfonso Ribeiro Does The Carlton
We all knew it was going to happen, and it did. And it was fun. It's hard to say more about it. He created and adapted his infamous Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air dance into something that showed his true talent as a musician, and he was awarded with the night's only perfect score.
THE BAD
Jonathan Bennett's Fun But Awkward Number
Mean Girls star Jonathan Bennett's song started off as a corny, traditional Christmas-themed number before Jonathan ripped off his cheesy sweater and abruptly transitioning into a wacky Samba set to 'Milkshake'. Unfortunately, Bennett stomps around the dance floor like a 30-year-old who was just learning how to walk for the first time.
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Michael Waltrip. Just, Everything.
He seems like an incredibly nice guy. When he shared his memories of the day Dale Earnhardt, his friend and mentor, died on the same day that Waltrip won the Daytona 500, it was incredibly touching. Even when he's dancing, it’s clear that he's just trying so hard. Unfortunately, he's just not good, and the dances feel painfully clunky because of it.
THE WEIRD
Sadie Robertson's Weird Whole Deal
Sadie Robertson's dance this week saw her dressed up like a duck (sort of), getting stalk-danced at by a guy dressed up like a duck hunter. The dancing was well-done, but awkward, as was Sadie's Duck Dynasty father and family sitting on stage watching the whole thing go down. All of it felt like something out of a David Lynch movie.
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Lea Thompson Gets Cheated Out Of A Perfect Score By America
This week, the guest judge was America. Meaning, people were able to vote in real time to award each contestant an immediate score on their performance. Usually, America hung pretty close to how the judges voted, but when it came to Lea Thompson (who gave one of the most beautiful and heartfelt performances of the whole season) the judges each gave out 10s, while America responded with a 9. As Erin Andrews said, "Eww, America."
FINAL SCORES
Alfonso Ribeiro and Witney Carson – 40
Lea Thompson and Artem Chigvintsev - 39
Sadie Robertson and Mark Ballas – 37
Janel Parrish and Val Chmerkovskiy – 36
Bethany Mota and Derek Hough - 33
Antonio Sabato, Jr. and Cheryl Burke – 29
Betsey Johnson and Tony Dovolani - 29
Tommy Chong and Peta Murgatroyd - 28
Michael Waltrip and Emma Slater - 25
Jonathan Bennett and Allison Holker - 24
ELIMINATION (*SPOILERS*)
At the end of the night, three stars found themselves on the chopping block. Tommy Chong, Betsey Johnson, and Michael Waltrip stood with their pro partners, waiting for word of who would be going home.
The first person safe? Tommy Chong, who had performed a funny but forgettable prison-themed number. His score and his votes from the public gave him at least one more chance to show off his moves.
Finally, after a long, suspenseful wait, it was revealed that Betsy Johnson, who had the highest scores this episode of all three people in jeopardy, would be leaving the show.
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Meaning we'll get to see at least one more awkward, clunky, adorable performance from Michael Waltrip.
Check out this behind-the-scenes look at Antonio Sabato Jr. and Cheryl Burke getting prepped for their sexy samba.
You can follow Zach on Twitter @ZachSeemayer
