Top 10 Sitcom Stars Who Are Surprisingly Good Dancers

This actress is often celebrated for her versatility. She’s best known for movies like “Monster,” “The Fate of the Furious” and “Snow White and the Huntsman.” However, she also proved she could make us laugh with roles in comedies like “Arrested Development” and “Orville.” That’s why it’s pretty out of left field to imagine that she once envisioned a career in dance? Theron trained at Joffrey Ballet School in New York until an untimely knee injury brought an abrupt end to that dream. After falling into a depression, her mom encouraged her to “figure out what to do next.” We’re glad she turned to acting because she’s a phenomenal talent. And we still get to see her dance on occasion!

Over the years, we’ve come to know Paul Rudd as a talented actor, all-around nice guy, and as of 2021, the Sexiest Man Alive. Among his many crowd-pleasing qualities is an inclination and flair for grooving. While we’re yet to see him take on a dancing role, there’s plenty of evidence of his skills in films and TV shows like “I Could Never Be Your Woman,” “Overnight Delivery,” and “Living with Yourself.” He’s also partial to a spot of behind-the-scenes dancing in the MCU and on the occasional Late Night show. Rudd’s dancing has become so iconic that one fan compiled various clips and set them to Earth, Wind, and Fire’s “September,” which works maybe a little too well…

These days she’s best known as Carrie Bradshaw from “Sex and the City,” but Parker actually started her career on the stage – both the dancing stage and Broadway. As a child, she trained in ballet, and her family moved to New York to further her career. The actress studied at the New York Professional Children’s School, the School of American Ballet in New York City, and Hollywood High School in Los Angeles. She hung up her ballet slippers when she broke into the movie biz, but didn’t leave dance behind completely. She did go on to appear in dance-centered flicks like “Footloose” and “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.” In 2010, SJP told Hello! Magazine that she wishes she’d kept up ballet because “it’s still [her] favorite thing.”

Like Sarah Jessica Parker, Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s career also started on the stage, although fans might better remember him as Tommy Solomon from “3rd Rock from the Sun.” Even after he transitioned to the silver screen, his stage experience came in handy throughout his career. Who could possibly forget that iconic dance sequence in “500 Days of Summer” or his unbelievable “Rhythm Nation” performance on “Lip Sync Battle”? He’s even channeled “Magic Mike” on “SNL”! In 2020, the actor told People Magazine that he dances with his kids all the time, claiming they can’t tell he’s a “mediocre” dancer. If you ask us, there’s nothing average about his far-reaching talents! In fact, is there anything he can’t do?

When we think of Alfonso Ribeiro, we imagine this dance springs to mind. However, the actor’s talents stretch beyond just the Carlton. Although he’s never really had any formal training, his natural flair for movement is quite breathtaking. He learned to tap dance for his Broadway musical leading man debut in “The Tap Dance Kid,” which earned him a nomination for an Outer Critics Circle Award. Riberio also danced in the 1984 Pepsi commercial starring Michael Jackson and received performance tips from the icon. In 1985, he released a dance-step instruction manual called “Alfonso’s Breakin’ & Poppin’ Book,” which he promoted on MTV. Ribeiro would later flex his skills again on season 19 of “Dancing with the Stars,” taking home the mirrorball.

This actor’s probably best-known to 2000s audiences from his roles in “Clueless” or as Dr. Turk in the medical-comedy “Scrubs.” One of his highlights in the latter involved an impromptu performance to Bell Biv DeVoe’s “Poison” in season five. During an air-band audition, Turk expertly and smoothly struts his stuff. Faison actually improvised the entire routine on set without even having read the scene beforehand. When asked about his dance background, Faison supposedly claimed he just has rhythm. Anyway, the routine regained popularity after its inclusion in the video game “Fortnite.” But for those of us in the know, it will always make us think of Dr. Christopher Turk.

No matter how much time passes, Dr. Danny Castellano’s dances for Mindy will forever live rent-free in our heads. Some of that might just be down to the actor’s dance background. As a child, Messina was a competitive dancer and, as soon as the writers on “The Mindy Project” caught whiff of his talents, they knew they had to include them on the show. He worked with choreographer Jeri Slaughter, a choreographer from Aaliyah’s “Try Again” music video, on that incredible routine he performs for Mindy. And, who could forget that daringly sexy striptease to “American Woman” in the season three premiere? Likeability, talent, and moves, Messina’s got the whole package.

These days, you can see Walken in the British crime comedy “The Outlaws.” However, the Academy Award winner was putting his ‘best foot forward’ as a dancer long before that. He starred alongside Liza Minnelli off-Broadway and was a dancer in Monique van Vooren’s nightclub act. Although he predominantly switched to more dramatic roles, Walken can still be spotted cutting a rug on many occasions. We saw him strut his stuff in “Wayne’s World 2,” show off his talents in “Hairspray,” and tap his heart out in “Pennies from Heaven.” He also famously danced in Fatboy Slim’s multi-award-winning “Weapon of Choice” music video. Walken brings plenty of spirit and panache to absolutely any style of dance.

It’s hard to imagine Ron Swanson so much as nodding his head to music – unless he’s consumed Snake Juice, of course. But the actor behind the poker-faced director of the Parks and Recreation department is actually quite the skilled groover. He told Chicago Magazine that he took two semesters of ballet while enrolled at the University of Illinois. His wife, Megan Mullally, also has a ballet background and is no stranger to the Broadway stage. She’s Offerman’s biggest cheerleader when it comes to his dance abilities, although we don’t think he needs much prompting, given his willingness to break out his best moves on the Late Night circuit.

Amy Santiago’s accomplished in many ways, but dancing isn’t one of them. However, the same can’t be said of the actress who portrays her. Melissa Fumero shared how her parents saved every penny so she could attend dance classes as a child. She also taught ballet to children while in high school. She’s not the only talented dancer from “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” either, and no, we’re talking about Gina Linetti. Stephanie Beatriz proved she could also burn up the dance floor in the movie adaptation of “In the Heights,” and “B99” definitely took the opportunity to tease Rosa’s undercover dance skills. In any case, it takes true talent to make dancing look that magnificently awkward, which is a real testament to Fumero’s abilities.