While many celebs shy away from talking about money, “Dancing With the Stars” pro Jenna Johnson recently had no problem opening up. On the June 2 episode of Kelly Stafford and Hank Winchester’s “The Morning After” podcast, she got down to the dollars and cents of it all.
A “Dancing With the Stars” pro who is eliminated during the first week of a new season “doesn’t get paid for the next couple of rounds.” According to Johnson, “You’re guaranteed until a certain amount of weeks.”
Jenna Johnson Says The Pay Scale for ‘DWTS’ Varies
While “Dancing With the Stars” contracts may be drafted similarly, not every professional dancer earns the same amount.
Jenna clarified in her interview with Kelly and Hank, “I think there are different contracts, so I can’t speak for everybody. But if you make it all the way to the end, you’re getting paid the whole season, which is amazing. And you get a bonus on top of that for making it to the finale. If you win, it’s not like you win a million dollars and split it with your partner. You’re just getting a cute trophy together.”
Jenna Johnson Has Had a Successful Run on ‘DWTS’
Johnson has made it into the final three with several of her partners since making her DWTS pro debut during season 23 way back in 2016. Johnson also took home the Mirrorball trophy with figure skater Adam Rippon in 2018, and she also landed in second place twice in a row with her season 29 partner, Nev Schulman, and her season 30 partner, JoJo Siwa. At that point, Jenna was tired of being second-best, so she fought and won her second Mirrorball trophy with Joey Graziadei during DWTS’ season 33.
According to Parade, pro dancers on the ABC competition series reportedly earn a starting salary of $1,200 to $1,600 an episode, which can increase to a cap of around $100,000 per season. Things such as seniority and previous success can also play a part in a dancer’s salary.
The celebrity cast does pretty well, too. According to Variety, the starting salary for celebrities is $125,000, which includes training for at least 20 hours per week, including several weeks before the premiere of the season. If they progress in the competition and do well, then the celebrity payout rises as well.
