His competitors have said they expect him to do very, very well on “Dancing with the Stars: All Stars,” but Gilles Marini said he isn’t as great of a dancer as his co-stars think.
“They say, ‘The frontrunner!’ — something which just makes me laugh. It makes me laugh because [Peta Murgatroyd] clearly sees every day it takes me like six hours to do one-eighth [of a routine],” Gilles told AccessHollywood.com’s Laura Saltman as he rehearsed with his professional dancing partner on Friday in Los Angeles.
“But, I understand the concept of their game plan, but it won’t work,” he added. “We’re just gonna keep working.”
Gilles said he thinks one reason people are singling Gilles and Peta out for mirrorball glory is because his partner won Season 14 with Donald Driver.
“I get it. I have Peta,” he said. “It’s going to be fun.”
As he settles into their routines – a foxtrot and a jive are up first – Gilles said Peta has been a wonderful and understanding teacher.
“She’s very sweet and patient, and I love that about her, because, let me tell you, phew! It’s a challenge for her, it is a challenge,” he said.
Peta wasn’t competing as a pro the first time Gilles made it to the Season 8 finals with Cheryl Burke, but the Australian dancer was aware of his past, including his infamous shower scene in the first “Sex and the City” movie.
“I think [my] girlfriends replayed it like 10 times. Just rewind back, rewind back, rewind back,” she laughed.
“That was a long time ago, when I was young and cute,” Gilles, who is now a full time cast member on ABC’s “Switched At Birth” told Laura. “Now, I’m an old, broken half dancer.”
“Dancing with the Stars: All-Stars” premieres Monday, September 24 at 8/7c on ABC.
— Jolie Lash
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