“DWTS” pro and former Taylor Swift dancer Jan Ravnik names the Kelce brothers as his dream guest judges
“DWTS” pro and former Taylor Swift dancer Jan Ravnik names the Kelce brothers as his dream guest judges
Ryan ColemanWed, November 11, 2026 at 9:51 PM UTC
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Jan Ravnik and Tatyana Ali on ‘DWTS’; Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift at the 2026 iHeartRadio Music AwardsCredit: Christopher Willard/Disney; Kevin Mazur/GettyKey Points -
Dancing With the Stars pro Jan Ravnik has revealed his pick for dream DWTS guest judge.
The former backup dancer for Taylor Swift told EW that he’d love to see Travis and Jason Kelce on the judging panel.
“They would be incredible,” Ravnik said. “They would know nothing about dance, but somehow judge great.”
This season of Dancing With the Stars already tapped NFL broadcaster Joe Buck to guest-judge an episode, so why not call on two real live footballers to do the same?
Two-season dance pro and, as of Tuesday’s Grammy Night, official season 35 semifinalist Jan Ravnik knows exactly which two athletes he’d plant between Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough, and Bruno Tonioli on the judging panel.
Standing beside his celebrity partner, Fresh Prince of Bel-Air star Tatyana Ali, Ravnik mused to Entertainment Weekly after Grammy Night wrapped, “Oh, who would be my dream? You know what would be cool, if there would be the Kelce brothers here, one of them.”
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce at Arrowhead Stadium in 2025Credit: David Eulitt/Getty
He added, “They would be incredible. They would know nothing about dance, but somehow judge great.”
Ravnik’s pick might seem out of left field if you aren’t familiar with his background. The dance ace joined the cast of DWTS last year, competing with celebrity partner Jen Affleck, of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.
His story prior to being cast doesn’t conform to the typical DWTS trajectory of emerging from a rigorous Russian or Ukrainian regimen of strict ballroom training (a la the Chmerkvoskiy brothers or Artem Chigvinstev), nor from the tight-knit community of dancers in Salt Lake City (a la the Hough siblings, Jenna Johnson, Witney Carson, and more). Indeed, Ravnik’s background is slightly more… enchanted.
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Hailing from Slovenia and earning multiple European and world dancing championship titles before he ever moved to the States, Ravnik gained pop cultural prominence after being tapped by Taylor Swift to join her globetrotting Eras Tour.
The record-breaking tour spanned nearly 150 shows across five continents, and lasted two years. Ravnik was there for all of it, and can be seen in Swift’s Eras Tour film.
Taylor Swift performing with Jan Ravnik in 2023Credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty
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Though some former DWTS pros weren’t happy to see someone with Ravnik’s commercial background joining the cast of pros, Ravnik has settled into the cast and propelled Ali all the way to the semifinals.
New episodes of Dancing With the Stars season 35 air Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and Disney+.
With reporting by Jillian Sederholm and Courtney Echerd.
on Entertainment Weekly
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
