Carrie Ann Inaba has a lot of praise for Sasha Farber and Jenn Tran’s chemistry on Dancing With the Stars.
“Sasha and Jenn have a really great connection,” Inaba, 56, told Entertainment Weekly on Wednesday, October 23. “When I talk about [their] chemistry, I don’t mean it in a sexual way. In partner dancing, it really does help to have a natural chemistry where you can feel your partner. You can kind of anticipate where they’re going because there’s just an ongoing connection.”
Inaba noted that “there seems to be a really good balance of energies” between Farber, 40, and Tran, 26, adding that “they complement each other really well.”
“I think the basis of their chemistry is her trust in him,” Inaba said. “And I believe that this chemistry that they have developed has really created a safe space for her to grow as a dancer.”
When the outlet pointed out that “things got kinda weird” when cohost Julianne Hough asked about their chemistry in the skybox, Inaba said she wasn’t sure what happened.
“I didn’t catch what happened up with Julianne after they danced,” Inaba said. “So I’m curious as well.”
After Farber and Tran danced a rumba to Little Mermaid’s “Kiss the Girl,” Hough asked the pairing if their chemistry does “make a difference” in the ballroom.
“Absolutely, I mean I think if we didn’t have such a good relationship, our dancing would be totally off. We trust each other so much, we know each other so well, so that’s why this works so well,” Tran replied.
Ahead of their performance on Tuesday, Tran was seen in the pre-dance package asking Farber if he was going to “kiss the girl.” Ultimately, he pressed a kiss on her forehead after the dance. As for why they didn’t lock lips, Tran said that they wanted to keep their routine as accurate as possible to the Disney film.
“We wanted to do the scene justice and do it the way the movie was,” she exclusively told Us Weekly on Tuesday. “We don’t want to make up stuff that didn’t happen in the movie, that’d be crazy.”
Tran noted that Princess Ariel and Prince Eric “don’t kiss” at the end of the 1989 animated movie, while Farber added that he wanted to keep the dance “elegant.”
While reflecting on their performance, Tran gushed that it was “really exciting” to get positive feedback from one judge in particular — Inaba, who called the routine their “best dance so far.”
“I worked really hard this week, so Carrie Ann telling me that meant a lot,” she said.
Dancing With the Stars airs simultaneously on ABC and Disney+ Tuesdays on ABC at 8 p.m. ET. You can stream episodes on Disney+ the next day.
