The opening number of the latest episode of “Dancing with the Stars” had a small mistake that some viewers barely noticed thanks to a dancer’s impressive recovery.
The Nov. 2 episode of dance competition series Disney Night opened with Broadway-inspired routines celebrating productions like “The Lion King,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “Newsies,” “The Greatest Showman” and “Aladdin.” Each musical was highlighted by performances featuring the “DWTS” cast and professionals. But one member of the group briefly slipped and had an unexpected moment in the spotlight.
After the “News” segment began, dancer Diego Pasillas glided onto the stage and stumbled, then appeared out of nowhere and made his next move without missing a beat.
Pasillas reacted to his fall in a video shared on Instagram following his performance. “Guys, I just ate this on national television,” he said, laughing.
He then added a slow-motion TikTok clip of the crash before making the right move. “But I did it instead,” he added and recreated the plug. He showed how he half-turned the fall and got back up.
“The show must go on,” Pasillas said flippantly.
In the comments, fans applauded Pasillas’ positive attitude and emphasized how the mistake didn’t surprise him.
“This was the most iconic recovery in HISTORY,” one raved.
Another joked: “This was NOT a mistake. It was an ‘unexpected solo’.”
A third said: “From now on every dance teacher will be playing this clip to teach their dancers what accepting your mistakes and good recovery techniques can do for a performer. A masterclass indeed.”
Even a few professionals called in to show support for a member of their “DWTS” family.
Val Chmerkovskiy said humorously: “Brother, first you blamed, and then you threw nonsense into the air.”
“BUT HOW YOU GET UP” and “PROFESSIONAL IS BAD,” new pro Hailey Bills wrote in another comment.
On her Instagram story, Pasillas further shared sweet messages from viewers who complimented her professionalism.
The lively opening song by Pasillas and the other dancers set the tone for the night. Amber Glenn, Jenna Dewan and Harry Shum Jr. Stars such as performed routines to classic Disney songs throughout the evening. All the stars were then split into two teams of four for group dances to the songs “Zootopia 2” and “High School Musical.”
At the end of the night, it was announced that Julia Stiles and her partner Ezra Sosa were eliminated from the competition.
“It was an incredible experience,” Stiles said before expressing his gratitude to his partner.