Harry Jowsey Talks ‘Dancing With the Stars,’ Personal Style and Returning to Reality Television
Harry Jowsey rose to fame after Season One of the Netflix reality dating series “Too Hot to Handle,” and can now be seen in a variety of dance costumes on “Dancing With the Stars.”
Following his first stint on reality television, where he was in a high-profile romance with fellow contestant Francesca Farago, Jowsey amassed quite a social media following on Instagram, where he boasts 4 million followers. On TikTok, he has gained 4.9 million followers. On YouTube, he’s garnered more than 190,000 subscribers.
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Jowsey’s reality television career didn’t stop at “Too Hot to Handle.” He’s been the host of Netflix’s “Who Wore It Best?” and was a contestant on “The Amazing Race Australia.” For his latest reality television move, Jowsey has put on his actual dancing shoes as a contestant on Season 32 of “Dancing With the Stars.”
The reality dance competition program debuted its 32nd season on Sept. 26. Jowsey paired with Rylee Arnold as his professional dance partner. Although the world of dance is new to him, Jowsey said he feels right at home with reality television.
“I really love reality television, and this is the third show I’ve been on in the past four months,” Jowsey said. “I just have this big spurt of energy right now where I feel like I need to do television projects. I find being on reality more fulfilling that a lot of what I do on social media.”
One of the things Jowsey says he appreciates the most about reality television is the communal feeling of being on set. “When you’re on a production, you’re part of a big family,” he said. “I started to fall in love with doing reality television because everyone comes on the show with a common goal. I particularly love competition shows now, like ‘Dancing With the Stars’ and ‘The Amazing Race’ because there’s a feel-good nature to the competitive stuff that’s different from the dating shows I’ve done where everyone just wants to hook up with somebody.”
He added, “Reality television is so different from my social media stuff because there’s structure and I like having structure. With my social media stuff, I can wake up and post whenever. It’s nice to have a routine.”
Jowsey, who’s fallen more in love with fashion and style during his time in the spotlight, has seen “Dancing With the Stars” push his usual style boundaries. On this week’s episode of “Dancing With the Stars,” the costume department dressed him as Woody from “Toy Story.”
“I’ve given up on my personal style having any effect on these costume choices,” Jowsey said. “Outside of performing, I’m in gym clothes for dance rehearsal. I am having plenty of fun with these costume changes though.”
Jowsey says his personal style has really evolved over the past several years. At the beginning of his career in the public eye, he gravitated toward more street-style pieces. After seeing several of his friends in a Ralph Lauren campaign, he’s gravitated toward more tailored pieces, boots and preppy-inspired clothing. He’s found himself shopping at Neiman Marcus more.
“I’ve gone from the guy in baggy street-style clothes looking like he’s ready to go skating to the guy who looks like he’s going to play golf,” Jowsey said.
His new favorite fall must-have is a sports jacket, as he’s realized the value of layering. “Sports jackets keep you warm and they’re cute,” he said.
The reality star is no stranger to fitness and working out, but taking on dancing was a whole new animal for him. Prior to “Dancing With the Stars,” he had no formal dance training. On Tuesday’s episode, he’ll attempt what he said is his favorite form of dance on the show so far: the quickstep.
ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars” airs on Tuesday at 8 p.m. EST. The program is available for streaming on Disney+ and Hulu the following day.
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