Julianne Hough

Julianne Alexandra Hough (; born July 20, 1988) is an American dancer, actress, singer and television personality. In 2007, she joined the cast of ABC's Dancing with the Stars as a professional dancer, winning two seasons with her celebrity partners. After leaving the show in 2009, she returned in 2014 to serve as a permanent judge on Dancing with the Stars, a position she held until 2017. For her work on the series, she has received three nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography, winning once in 2015 with her brother Derek Hough. Hough made her acting debut in the 2001 film Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, but played her first major role in the 2010 film Burlesque, which was followed with leading roles as Ariel in Footloose (2011), Sherrie in Rock of Ages (2012), and Katie in Safe Haven (2013). Hough portrayed Sandy in the 2016 live Fox television production of Grease. She also served as a judge on America's Got Talent for its 14th season. In 2022, she made her Broadway theatre debut in the political farce POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive. That same year, she hosted The Tony Awards: Act One alongside Darren Criss. In 2023, Hough returned to Dancing with the Stars as co-host, alongside main host Alfonso Ribeiro. Early life Hough was born in Orem, Utah, the youngest of five children in a Mormon family. Her parents are Bruce and Marianne Hough; her father was twice chairman of the Utah Republican Party and ran for Utah's 2nd congressional district in 2023. Her brother, Derek Hough, is also a professional dancer. She has three older sisters. All four of Hough's grandparents were dancers. She is also a second cousin of musicians Riker, Rydel, Rocky and Ross Lynch from R5, their maternal grandmothers being sisters. Hough's formal training began at the Center Stage Performing Arts Studio in Orem where she danced with Josh Murillo, among others, in Latin Ballroom. She began dancing competitively at nine. When she was 10, Julianne's parents, who were divorcing, sent Julianne and her brother Derek to London to live and study with their coaches, Corky and Shirley Ballas. The Ballases tutored the Houghs alongside their own son, Mark. At the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts Hough and her brother received training in song, theatre, gymnastics and many forms of dance, including jazz, ballet, and tap.