Rumer Willis has revealed that she defied her mother Demi Moore by competing on Dancing with the Stars almost a decade ago.
Actress Willis, 36, competed on Season 20 of the long-running ABC ballroom competition back in May 2015. Along with her professional dance partner Valentin Chmerkovskiy, Willis walked away the victor, beating singer and actor Riker Lynch and army veteran Noah Galloway, who placed second and third, respectively.
However, Willis has shared that while Ghost star Moore was among the family members cheering her on during her entire run on the show, the veteran screen star was hesitant about her daughter competing for the coveted Mirrorball Trophy.
Making an appearance on a recent episode of podcast The Glamour and Grit, Willis—whose father is action movie star Bruce Willis—was asked about her time on the show, prompting her to share the positive impact it had on her life.
Demi Moore is pictured on October 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Her daughter Rumer Willis is seen inset on September 16, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Willis has stated that her mother initially advised her against competing on “Dancing with the Stars” almost a decade ago.
Amy Sussman/Getty Images;/Aliah Anderson/WireImage
“That was probably one of the most confidence building experiences of my life,” Rumer Willis said. “Because even though also it was like crazy and so challenging.”
She continued: “Learning a new skill that was not anything to do with my parents was so esteem building, because my mom was like, ‘I do not think that you should do this. Like, this is—don’t do this. And I was like, ‘No, I’m gonna do it. I want to learn how to dance.’ Like, whatever.”
Newsweek has contacted a representative of Moore via email for comment.
Despite any doubts Moore may have had, she was front and center, along with her ex-husband Bruce Willis, were fixtures in the audience throughout her ultimately successful run on DWTS.
Rumer Willis, who went on to make her Broadway debut as Roxie Hart in the hit musical Chicago in September 2015, shared during her podcast appearance that she has long held a desire to face challenges head on.
“I thrive under pressure—I thrive when I have a challenge to rise to,” she said. “One of the harder parts of life for me is when I don’t have something that I’m doing. I think that’s where I start to kind of get low, or if I start to have anxiety or get depressed—it’s when I don’t have enough that I’m like pushing myself towards.”
“I love a challenge. I love challenging myself,” she added. “I always wanted to be in the circus or be in the Olympics, you know, when I was a kid, because I think I just… love the idea of performing at a very high level.
“It’s probably also why I find talent so attractive, because people who are good at what they do, there’s nothing better, you know what I mean? It’s probably very toxic, but like you know… I always wanted to be someone who was, like, good at pool or good at darts or roller skating, like, I always wanted to be good at random things, just because I thought that was a really cool skill to have.”
Next up on Rumer Willis’ roster of challenges? “I want to write an album,” she declared.
