Black Athletes in the Spotlight: HBCU Sports & Local Highlights
- Jackson Olson apologized on Instagram with a Hannah Montana "Nobody's Perfect" video, saying he loves Guillermo Rodriguez.
- Guillermo Rodriguez said they're friends while competing, telling TV Insider they're "having fun" and Olson is "a good guy."
- Both Jackson Olson and Guillermo Rodriguez were saved from elimination; Olson and partner Emma Slater scored 21 out of 30 for a waltz.
Dancing With the Stars season 35 contestants Jackson Olson and Guillmero Rodriguez have no bad blood after the Savannah Bananas star’s viral negative comment.
“I went to his trailer, we talked for 30 minutes,” Olson, 29, told E! News on Tuesday, October 6, after the show’s Mariah Carey Night episode. “We’re fine. We’ve been friends through this entire journey. We’ve ranted to each other, we’ve talked to each other, and I just walked in and was like, ‘Hey I just want you to know, I meant nothing by that.’”
Olson added of Rodriguez’s reaction, “He was like, ‘Dude, I know. It’s totally fine.’”
Days earlier, Olson raised eyebrows on social media when he reacted to a video of a Loco Beach Coconuts player doing a take on one of Rodriguez’s dances with pro Witney Carson.
“But seriously, how did you do this better than him with 2 hours of rehearsal,” Olson wrote, adding a laughing emoji.
Olson later apologized for the remark, sharing a video with Rodriguez, 55, set to audio from the Hannah Montana song “Nobody’s Perfect.”
“To G and to all of you, from the bottom of my heart I am so sorry about my comment I made the other day and that it caused this much negativity,” he wrote via Instagram on Tuesday. “I love this guy ❤️ now let’s do what this show is meant to be about.. DANCE 🕺 ily G.”
Rodriguez, for his part, echoed a similar sentiment. “We’re friends,” he told TV Insider after Mariah Carey Night. “We’re competing against each other, but we’re friends. We’re having fun. He’s a good guy.”
Following his public apology, Olson hit the ballroom floor with partner Emma Slater to perform a waltz to “Without You,” earning a combined score of 21 out of 30 from judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli.
“That’s awesome. We just gotta keep improving every week,” Olson said after receiving his scores. “That’s the thing about life, we just gotta keep improving, right?”
Both Olson and Rodriguez were saved from elimination, with Summer House’s Ciara Miller and partner Brandon Armstrong saying goodbye after their jazz routine to “Emotions.” (The pair earned 21 out of 30 points.)
“It’s been a week. But you did it. Emotionally, physically, mentally, this is a full ride. But look at that dance you did today. So special. Onto next week 🙌🏻,” Slater, 37, wrote via Instagram on Tuesday. “Thank you to everyone who voted THANK YOU 🙏🏻😭😭😭😭.”
Dancing With the Stars airs on ABC and Disney+ Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET.
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