DAYS Alum Trevor Donovan Talks Dancing With the Stars, Anti-Bullying

Many seasons of Dancing With the Stars contain one or two stars who’ve come from the soap world or are even still in the world of daytime drama — General Hospital’s Kelly Monaco, who plays Sam, was the show’s first champion! This year is no exception as Trevor Donovan, who once portrayed Jeremy Horton on Days of our Lives, along with pro partner Emma Slater, are competing for mirror ball gold.

Trevor Donovan on His James Bond Night Tango

On week three of the dance competition/reality series, Trevor Donovan and Emma Slater danced a tango on James Bond Night to the song “You Know My Name” from the film Casino Royale, which starred Daniel Craig as 007. Soap Hub was among a small group of reporters who talked to the duo after Monday’s live show.

Trevor, judge Derek Hough said you might be this season’s…
Trevor Donovan: …Dark horse!
How’d that make you feel?
Trevor Donovan: Awesome. We’re surprising people. It’s a great feeling. I’m not sure if people expected me to be able to walk forward!
Emma Slater: I think ‘Dark Horse’ has a lot of power to it.

When did you see Trever make a connection with dancing?
Emma Slater: I think it was in week two [Elvis Presley Night] when we did the rumba, achieving something beautiful, and we connected. Something happened. It’s changed the way Trevor feels about performing.
Trevor Donovan: Absolutely.

Emma, what was your surfing lesson with Trevor like?
Emma Slater: I hadn’t tried something new like that in a really long time. It’s really hard. I stood up [on the surfboard], and I was so proud of myself! [Laughs] I didn’t look as good [on the surfboard] as I thought I did!
Trevor Donovan: You did great.
Emma Slater: I had a really good teacher. Trevor pushed me into the wave and taught me when to stand up. I wouldn’t have done that without his guidance. And he’s really comfortable with surfing.

You had in your pocket a coin from some students from Deer Lakes Middle School in Cheswick, PA. You had to truly dig into there to get it out to show it on air!
Trevor Donovan: I had to get it out. I started this antibullying initiative called Team Upstanders. I encourage kids to stand up to their fears. I get to stand up to my biggest fear [dancing] on a platform like this, and they get to watch. For them to be this supportive and to go as far as to make [this coin] for me is incredible.

You played Jeremy Horton on Days of our Lives in 2007. Do you have a shoutout to any DAYS fans who are voting for you to win this competition?
Trevor Donovan: If I have any DAYS fans who are voting for me, I want to say, ‘Thank you!’ That was the very beginning of my career, so thanks to the people who have been following me since then!

On Monday, the couple returns to the ballroom for Disney+ Night and will perform a samba to ‘Life is a Highway’ from Disney and Pixar’s Cars. To vote for Trevor Donovan and Emma Slater, text the word TREVOR to 21523. To learn more about Donovan’s anti-bullying foundation, click here. Dancing With the Stars streams live on Disney+ on Mondays at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT).

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