Some “Dancing With the Stars” fans are upset with Derek Hough — and his sister, Julianne Hough — for a comment he made about Sasha Farber and Jenn Tran’s apparent chemistry.
After the two danced a rumba to “Kiss the Girl” from “The Little Mermaid,” Hough said that he ships the two, meaning he supports them being in a relationship.
“Is it weird for me to say that I ship this?” Hough said from the judges’ table.
While there have been some rumors that Farber and Tran’s playful, fun chemistry touches on being romantic, many fans want to give the two space to just be themselves. Instead, some fans feel that Farber and Tran are being placed under unnecessary stress because their possible romance/showmance has become a focus of season 33.
Both Farber and Tran are single, but they have more than a decade between them. They have developed strong friendship and they’ve played into the showmance here and there, but fans are sounding off on social media.
Fans Reacted to the Sasha Farber & Jenn Tran Shipping Comments on Reddit
“Stop trying to make a showmance with Sasha and Jenn happen, it’s not going to happen. Sasha seemed super uncomfortable every time hints were dropped. He even pulled away from Jenn when she tried to wrap his arm around her. Let it go. Do we even need showmances?” someone posted on Reddit, kicking off a new thread.
“Yes, leave Jenn and Sasha alone. Let them enjoy dancing w/each other without putting pressure on them. The other couples don’t have that pressure,” someone else said.
“I think there could be something between Jenn and Sasha, and I felt it in tonight’s dance, but I wish the show would just let whatever happens, happen. They don’t need to force it and make it weird,” a third comment read.
“I wish they’d just let Jenn and Sasha have their chemistry but stop leaning into it or asking about it because that’s what always makes it cringey and uncomfortable to me,” a fourth Redditor added.
Julianne Hough Also Commented on Sasha Farber & Jenn Tran’s Chemistry
Derek Hough wasn’t the only cast member that picked up on a spark between Farber and Tran, either. Co-host Julianne Hough poked some fun at the season 33 partners, asking Farber why he only kissed Tran on the forehead.
“But first, a kiss on the forehead? Sasha, come on,” Julianne Hough said.
“Elegant, classy,” Farber responded.
“He got nervous,” Tran said.
“Well, with the chemistry that you two have, does that actually make a difference? So does it make a difference with the chemistry, though, to have that for this partnership?” Julianne Hough pressed on.
“Absolutely,” Tran responded. “I mean, I think if we didn’t have such a good relationship, like 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,” she added.
After the show aired, Farber told People magazine why he didn’t go in for a kiss following their dance.
“I thought, ‘We have such an incredible bond. We work so well together.’ This dance was a classy, elegant rumba. It’d be weird if I was like, ‘Ra-ra-ra,’ so I just thought I’d be a gentleman,” he explained.
