A supportive friend! Markell Washington still can’t over Charli D’Amelio‘s “amazing” win on Dancing With the Stars, the influencer told J-14 exclusively. The dancer, known for his own TikTok page, supported the Connecticut native and her mom, Heidi D’Amelio, in the DWTS audience every week as they competed for the season 31 mirrorball trophy — which Charli eventually won.
“I only missed the last two because I got booked in Georgia to host a charity event. But it was so amazing to see her just progressively keep getting better and better after every week,” Markell, 25, recalled to J-14 at the ESPN and CFP Allstate Party at the Playoff Event on Saturday, January 7. “It made me so much more passionate about dance because I didn’t understand it before watching her, and just to see how much effort and energy she put into it, it was really crazy to see. To see her win and come out on top, I was literally blown away.”
During her DWTS season, Charli spoke candidly about her anxiety struggles ahead of her contemporary dance routine, which was set to Lewis Capaldi‘s cover of Billie Eilish‘s “When the Party’s Over.” Just like the audience, Markell was blown away by his friend’s performance.
“It brought tears to my eyes, honestly, because seeing her overcome everything with social media and anxiety, it was very breathtaking,” he gushed. “To see it come out in a dance and be able to interpret her feelings and everything she was passionate about, it was amazing to see it. She was telling me about it, but I couldn’t envision it and put the puzzle pieces together. But after watching it, it was amazing.”
Despite his constant support of Charli — and her sister, Dixie D’Amelio — the TikTok star is actually “closer to Heidi, 51, than I am Charli.” He added, “When we first originally met, I connected with Heidi first.”
He may have made headlines as a supportive bestie, but Markell actually has tons of projects in the works as 2023 continues.
“I filmed my first movie in July, and it comes out in March I believe,” he teased. “So, now, I’m in the process of creating a show with Warner Brothers. I can’t really say too much about it, but the movie is called Step Aside. So I’m excited for that and, and I want to get into more acting. I’m really starting to be passionate about acting and growing.”
Reporting by Louisa Marshall
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