As Dancing With the Stars fans may recall, the crowd at tapings of the beloved competition series is always full of familiar faces, showing their support for their co-stars, friends, and family.
Whether it is Chandler Kinney‘s co-star Milo Manheim — as well as the rest of the Zombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires cast — Stephen Nedoroscik’s girlfriend Tess McCracken, Danny Amendola’s fling Xandra Pohl, or anyone in between, there tends to be some rhyme or reason to each Dancing With the Stars attendee, but a certain Disney Channel star showed up to the monumental 500th episode that nobody expected to see step back into the limelight.
The Disney Channel star in question? The one and only Cody Linley, spotted by a Dancing With the Stars fan watching from the comfort of her own home:
For those who are unfamiliar, Linley is known for playing Jake Ryan, the love interest of Miley Stewart — played by Miley Cyrus — in the popular television series, Hannah Montana.
While his attendance at the 500th episode of Dancing With the Stars was seemingly out of the blue, Linley was actually a contestant back in 2008. How wild is that?
Following his success on the Hannah Montana, Linley signed onto Dancing With the Stars season 7, where he finished in fourth place alongside pro-turned-host Julianne Hough. Because he was involved in one of the first seasons of the hit competition show, being in the audience for this oh-so special episode was extra touching to Linley, taking to TikTok to reflect on the overall experience:
Naturally, Hannah Montana fans had a field day, taking to the comment section of his TikTok video to express nothing but pure shock:
“JAKE RYAN?????”
“I saw your smile and KNEWWW it was Jake Ryan 😂😂😭😭”
“Saw you on my screen and screamed ‘JAKE RYAN???'”
“I kept saying ‘IT’S JAKE RYAN’ and my friends kept looking at me confused…”
Aside from the above TikTok video, Linley also took to Instagram to reminisce on the 500th episode of Dancing With the Stars. He wrote, “I had so much fun enjoying @dancingwiththestars 500th episode & celebrating with the cast & crew 🎉🕺 They know how to put on a show!! 🪩 Congrats to the dancers, the hosts, producers, ad team, wardrobe, hair, makeup, the whole crew, celebs & shout out to the fans. Special thanks for anyone that voted for @juleshough & I back in season 7 😘”
Posting a photo alongside this season’s token Disney Channel star, it is safe to say that Linley has a certain contestant that he’s rooting for this time around. Lucky for him, Chandler and her professional dance partner, Brandon Armstrong, have a real shot at the coveted Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy!
Will they emerge victorious, though? To find out for yourself, catch brand-new episodes of Dancing With the Stars season 33 Tuesdays via ABC or Disney Plus, with next-day streaming via Hulu.
Look out, Chandler and Brandon. Joey Graziadei and Jenna Johnson might just give you a run for your money…