Samuel Johnson and Courtney Act might have gone head-to-head during last night’s Dancing With The Stars finale, which caused a little bit of controversy with its surprise outcome, but behind-the-scenes and away from the dancefloor, these two couldn’t be closer.
The actor and the drag queen have formed an unbreakable bond over the past four months, as they struggled together through hours of intense dance rehearsals and watching their good friends eliminated each week.
Even moments after being crowned the winner of Dancing With The Stars on Monday night, Samuel couldn’t help but acknowledge his talented friend.
“Courtney was the better dancer. I want to acknowledge Courtney!” he said.
During an interview with TV WEEK just hours after the official after party wrapped up in the early hours of Tuesday morning, Samuel said he agreed with many DWTS viewers, who argued Courtney deserved to win the disco ball trophy.
“Courtney Act is a mentor, a life coach and I would consider her a good friend. I can’t even begin to tell you how much Courtney helped me all through this. She is such a pro,” Samuel said.
“I’d be an idiot to pretend she wasn’t the far superior dancer week in, week out. She absolutely deserves this trophy more than anyone else. In my mind, she got everything right.”
Despite consistently improving each week and winning viewers over with his ruggged charm, Samuel revealed he always saw himself as the “supporting actor” in the “Courtney Act extravaganza”.
“I just wanted to be a good wingman for Courtney. I’m as surprised as anybody,” he said.
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Sam and his dance partner Jorja celebrating with their winner’s trophies. (Image: Channel 10)
But when asked if he thought the show’s controversial scoring system should be changed, Samuel said it should remain in place.
Currently, the outcome of the show is determined using a mix of the judges’ scores and votes from the public.
At the end of the finale, Courtney and her partner Josh were atop the leader board by one point, with a score of 59 compared to Samuel’s 58, but it appears the acclaimed actor won the popular vote, coming out on top.
“I think it’s important that viewers have their say and it’s important that we judge the dancing as well,” he said.
“But it’s not up to me to decide these things, it’s very tricky.”
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Accepting the winner’s trophy from host Grant Denyer. (Image: Channel 10)
As part of the winner’s prize, Samuel was awarded $50,000 cash to donate to his charity Love Your Sister.
The organisation raises much-needed funds for cancer research in memory of his beautiful sister Connie, who died in 2017 after a lifelong battle with cancer.
Samuel’s aim is to hit $10 million in donations and he’s promised that he won’t return to acting until he’s raised that eye-watering figure.
The Secret Life of Us and Molly star revealed to TV WEEK he is still sticking strong to his commitment and actually just turned down a coveted acting gig.
“I just said no to a plum role. I can’t even contemplate [returning to acting],” he said.
But after he reaches that $10 million figure?
“Anything goes!” said Sam.
So far, Love Your Sister has raised $9.3 million, so Sam is $700,000 away from reaching his ultimate goal.
Samuel and Courtney (pictured here out of drag) have formed an “insane bond.” (Image: @samueljjohnson78/Instagram)
The pair sharing a laugh behind the scenes. (Image: @samueljjohnson78/Instagram)
It’s no secret that the celebrity contestants on Dancing With The Stars have formed some fierce friendships over the past few months.
Samuel says Jett Kenny has become “like a little brother” and he gets along “like a house on fire” with Constance Hall.
But watching his friends get eliminated each week was “brutal”.
“The elimination element is brutal and we certainly were competing with ourselves and not each other,” Sam said.
“It’s the toughest part of the night with that show. We’ve developed an insane bond over these weeks and we’re a tight-knit mob.”
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This is a show that is famous for igniting romance – and we’ve already seen rumours fly about Jett and his dance partner Lily – but what about Sam’s romantic life?
Back in January, he revealed he had a crush on Studio 10 presenter Cassandra Thorburn.
“She’s banging,” Sam told Nova’s Fitzy and Wippa. “She’s looking good and she’s got the moves, I’ll tell you what.”
When asked by TV WEEK if he is currently in a relationship, Sam said he’s been “too busy dancing” for romance, but hinted there could still be a chance for him and Cassandra.
“I’m extremely fond of Cass,” he revealed.
We’ll keep you posted on any updates about Sam but in the meantime, you can donate to his charity Love Your Sister here.
