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For the first time in Dancing with the Stars history, the series will devote a theme night to the music of the James Bond movie franchise. With a music catalog of over 60 years, the Disney+ series has one chance to make this an unforgettable night of television. However, fans believe that the seductive nature of many of the tunes chosen for the night could go “very wrong.”

Dancing with the Stars pros season 31 and Daniel Craig, star of 007 James Bond franchise.
Dancing with the Stars pros and 007 star Daniel Craig | Disney+ Key Art/ Tristan Fewings/Getty Images for EON Productions

‘Dancing with the Stars’ attempts a ‘shaken not stirred’ night of music

This particular episode of Dancing with the Stars will be the first time the competition series takes a deep dive into the movie music of the James Bond film series. The movie franchise relies on a specific, tried-and-true formula. The suave secret service agent is pictured in exotic locations, surrounded by beautiful women, deadly villains, and larger-than-life action. Death-defying stunts, quirky gadgets, chase scenes, and exploding vehicles round out the mix.

Bond fans historically have high expectations for the music selected as the theme for each film. In The Music of James Bond, Jon Burlingame writes, “The style of music heard in the Bond films would become the de facto sound of international espionage on screen.”

Therefore, fans experienced a who’s who of performers throughout 27 films, including Shirley Bassey, Tom Jones, Nancy Sinatra, Paul McCartney, Sheena Easton, Duran Duran, Gladys Knight, Tina Turner, Sheryl Crow, Madonna, and Adele.

‘Dancing with the Stars’ fans fear seductive dances could go ‘very wrong’

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‘Dancing With the Stars’ Fans Beg for the End of ‘Ridiculous’ Theme Nights as Show Teases Tribute to James Bond 007

Dancing with the Stars viewers are on the fence regarding the competition’s performances. On a Reddit board dedicated to discussing the series, they spoke of how many of these seductive dances to James Bond music could go very wrong. Fans cited the lack of chemistry between celebrities and pros and the skillset needed to execute some of these ballroom dances properly.

“Omg, what is the living heck is up with all these Rumbas?” questioned one fan. “There is an open field of James bond movies with different songs just out there for the taking, and they choose ones with the same tone. Eight Rumba’s in one episode? Some of these celebs and pros have zero chemistry, how is this going to work?”

“Theme nights like Halloween, Broadway, or Hollywood are broad enough to work well. Something like James Bond, Elvis Presley, or Janet Jackson is too limiting. This episode could go very wrong, very fast,” penned a second viewer.

“Vinny [Guadagnino] is doing the Rumba… to ‘Thunderball’? Some bizarre choices here when several other songs are easier to dance to,” deduced the third fan.

“I believe no more than three couples should be doing the same dances. Couples miss out on many dance styles throughout the season because of these theme nights. Every week becomes redundant and boring because half of the couples do the same style. Also, many of these songs don’t fit the dance style. This is not a winning formula,” claimed a fourth Reddit poster.

The songs and dances for ‘Dancing with the Stars’ James Bond Night

A total of 14 performances will take place on the third episode of the season, reported Us Weekly. The following songs and dances are featured.

  • Gabby Windey and Val Chmerkovskiy perform a Cha Cha to “Die Another Day” by Madonna.
  • Daniel Durant and Britt Stewart dance the Rumba to “The World is Not Enough” by Garbage.
  • Joseph Baena and Alexis Warr (filling in for Daniella Karagach) dance an Argentine Tango to “Writing’s On the Wall” by Sam Smith.
  • Charli D’Amelio and Mark Ballas perform a Rumba to “No Time To Die” by Billie Eilish.
  • Heidi D’Amelio and Artem Chigvintsev dance the Argentine Tango to “Another Way to Die” by Jack White and Alicia Keys.
  • Trevor Donovan and Emma Slater will Tango to “You Know My Name” by Chris Cornell.
  • Jordin Sparks and Brandon Armstrong Rumba to “Licence To Kill” by Gladys Knight.
  • Shangela and Gleb Savchenko will Rumba to “Goldeneye” by Tina Turner.
  • Cheryl Ladd and Louis Van Amstel dance the Rumba to “Diamonds Are Forever” by Shirley Bassey.
  • Wayne Brady and Witney Carson Tango to “The Name’s Bond … James Bond” by David Arnold and Nicholas Dodd.
  • Vinny Guadagnino and Koko Iwasaki Rumba to “Thunderball” by Tom Jones.
  • Jessie James Decker and Alan Bersten Rumba to “Goldfinger” by Shirley Bassey.
  • Sam Champion and Cheryl Burke Samba to “Los Muertos Vivos Estan” by Thomas Newman ft. Tambuco.
  • Selma Blair and Sasha Farber Rumba to “For Your Eyes Only” by Sheena Easton.

Dancing with the Stars streams live on Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on Disney+.

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