Ryan Seacrest is on good terms with Dancing With the Stars judge Derek Hough, whose sister, Julianne Hough, is one of Seacrest’s exes. But the Wheel of Fortune host did have to give his pal a talking-to when Derek got a little rambunctious on the set of the Celebrity Wheel of Fortune spinoff.
“In the commercial break, [Derek] was jumping on the center of the wheel and having [fellow DWTS judge] Bruno [Tonioli] spin it, much like the top of a cake ornament,” Seacrest told USA Today in a recent interview. “We did say, ‘Please don’t do that. That would break it, and there’s only one of those wheels. If that breaks, we have a real problem.’”
Jumping on the podium, as Derek did as well in his September 26 episode, is one thing. But jumping on the 2,400-pound wheel is another. “We had to sort of say, ‘Stick to the ledge,’” Seacrest added. “[The DWTS guests are] very physical, and that makes for fun.”
But Seacrest enjoyed having familiar faces on the show. “Knowing someone, or being friends, is definitely helpful,” he said. “You can kind of tease them more than somebody you don’t know.”
In one funny exchange from the same episode, Seacrest ribbed Tonioli after the latter correctly guessed “WE DON’T TALK ABOUT BRUNO” as the answer to one puzzle.
“The irony is, you only want to be talked about,” Seacrest said to Tonioli.
“He knows me,” Tonioli told the audience.
In the end, Derek beat both Tonioli and Dancing With the Stars pro dancer Jenna Johnson to make it to the Million Dollar Bonus Round, but he didn’t guess “HUGS ALL AROUND” to win that puzzle.
The DWTS-themed Celebrity Wheel of Fortune episode also made headlines after Wheel of Fortune co-host Vanna White followed up on her promise to crochet Derek and his wife, Hayley Erbert, a blanket for their incoming baby.
White delivered that present on the set of Extra, the newsmagazine Derek is now hosting.
“I can’t wait to show this to my wife, and I can’t wait to swaddle — oh, I’m going to get emotional,” he said.
Celebrity Wheel of Fortune, Fridays. 8/7c, ABC