Harry Shum Jr. created one of the most talked-about moments of Dancing With the Stars Season 35 when he suddenly let out a powerful scream during his Viennese waltz with Jenna Johnson. The unexpected moment stunned the judges, audience and viewers watching at home, but Johnson has now explained that there was much more behind it than viewers initially saw.
Shum and Johnson performed their emotional routine to the Goo Goo Dolls’ “Iris” during Week 2’s Viral Hits Night. Near the end of the dance, Shum separated from Johnson, turned toward the camera and released a full-bodied scream before returning to the choreography.
The unusual moment quickly divided viewers. Some fans questioned why Shum suddenly screamed during an otherwise emotional waltz, while others saw it as an intense expression of the feelings the routine was attempting to communicate. Johnson later acknowledged that viewers had very different reactions to the moment.
According to Johnson, however, the television audience was missing an important piece of the story. She explained that she and Shum had a much deeper conversation during rehearsals about anxiety, pressure, self-doubt and the feeling of reaching an emotional breaking point. Much of that discussion never made it into the rehearsal package shown before the dance.
Johnson said the rehearsal packages had to be shortened because 14 couples were still competing in Week 2. With so many routines and contestants to feature, there was limited time to include every conversation that helped shape each performance. As a result, viewers saw the scream without hearing the discussion that inspired it.
The professional dancer explained that she and Shum had discussed what they wanted “Iris” to represent emotionally. Their conversation centered on the pressure people can feel, moments of uncertainty and what happens when those emotions build up to the point where someone feels close to breaking.
That discussion eventually led to the idea of using a scream as a physical release. Johnson explained that she sometimes finds screaming therapeutic when she feels overwhelmed, and she wanted to incorporate that idea into the choreography. She asked Shum if he was willing to fully commit to the unusual choice, and he agreed.
Shum later described the scream as therapeutic as well, explaining that it gave him a way to release emotions that dance normally requires performers to communicate without words. He also connected the routine to themes of yearning, belonging and questioning whether someone truly feels comfortable occupying the space they are in.
The judges ultimately awarded Shum and Johnson 18 out of 30 points for the routine. Derek Hough praised the performance as “beautiful,” while Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba offered additional critiques about Shum’s ballroom technique and the balance between his emotional performance and traditional dance form.
Once Johnson revealed the conversation that had been left out of the televised package, the controversial scream took on a different context. What initially appeared to be a spontaneous outburst was actually a deliberate creative decision developed during rehearsals. Shum and Johnson may have divided viewers with the moment, but their explanation made clear that the scream was intended to represent the emotional release at the heart of their “Iris” routine.
Compiled with information from various sources.
