TV Derek Hough praises Dancing With the Stars contestant for recreating his own dance better than him Chandler Kinney and Brandon Armstrong earned the first perfect score of season 33. By Maureen Lee Lenker Maureen Lee Lenker Maureen Lee Lenker is a senior writer at Entertainment Weekly with over seven years of experience in the entertainment industry. An award-winning journalist, she's written for Turner Classic Movies, Ms. Magazine, The Hollywood Reporter, and more. She's worked at EW for six years covering film, TV, theater, music, and books. The author of EW's quarterly romance review column, "Hot Stuff," Maureen holds Master's degrees from both the University of Southern California and the University of Oxford. Her debut novel, It Happened One Fight, is now available. Follow her for all things related to classic Hollywood, musicals, the romance genre, and Bruce Springsteen. EW's editorial guidelines Published on November 12, 2024 09:47PM EST Comments The student has become the master... On Tuesday night's 500th episode of Dancing With the Stars, the contestants were tasked with a unique challenge — recreating some of the show's most memorable dances from the past 20 years. But only Chandler Kinney and pro partner Brandon Armstrong had to recreate a dance originally executed by one of the judges. The duo recreated the Argentine tango that Derek Hough choreographed for himself and partner, Kellie Pickler, back in season 16. And Hough proclaimed their version of the routine better than his own. Dancing With the Stars contestant Chandler Kinney admits she's a 'little frustrated' by Carrie Ann Inaba's feedback 'Dancing With the Stars' judge Derek Hough; Chandler Kinney and Brandon Armstrong. Dancing With The Stars/instagram "Comparison is inevitable," Hough told the couple. "But I preferred this one. I really did. That’s a big compliment. Your approach was sharp and a little different. You did it smooth as silk — the accuracy, the intensity, it was just so slick." That's high praise considering that Hough and Pickler went on to win their season. But Hough was onto something with his remarks, given that the routine earned Kinney and Armstrong the first perfect score of season 33. Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more. Scoring all 10s from the panel, they sparked chaos at the judges' table as Bruno Tonioli swooned into Hough's lap (and the pair appeared to kiss until Carrie Ann Inaba joked that it was a "family show"). Chandler Kinney and Brandon Armstrong on 'Dancing With the Stars'. Dancing With The Stars/instagram The Bachelorette star Jenn Tran says Dancing With the Stars was her 'distraction' from breakup The 30 points put Kinney and Armstrong atop the leaders' board going into the Instant Dance Challenge. Throughout this season, fans have complained that Kinney has been judged more harshly due to her dance background and high level of achievement. But she and Armstrong finally earned the praise many felt they deserved all season. Dancing With the Stars airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and Disney+.