Julia Stiles Pays Glittery Tribute to Dolly Parton With ‘9 to 5’ Quickstep on ‘Dancing With the Stars’: Watch

Julia Stiles paid tribute to late country giant Dolly Parton in a most fitting way on her Wednesday night (Sept. 16) debut on Dancing with the Stars. The Save the Last Dance and Hustlers star hit the dance floor with partner professional dancer and season 34 finalist Ezra Sosa for a high-energy quickstep to Parton’s 1980 Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 crossover smash “9 to 5.”

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In a nod to the beloved big screen workplace comedy’s feminist dynamic, Stiles began the routine by first hugging Sosa and then dissing him with a too-slow fake-out by pulling her hand back when he went in for a handshake, busting out laughing as he gave the camera a dyspeptic frown. From there, it was all smiles, as the pair — both dressed in sparkling white tuxedos with silver accents — spun, high-kicked and briskly moved across the floor as they kept their upper bodies elegantly straight while their hips and feet did all the talking.

The dance was part of this week’s season 35 two-night premiere, with Stiles telling the judges that Parton had signed off on the usage of one of her most beloved songs before Parton’s death at 80 on August 25 following a brief battle with cancer.

“It was only a couple weeks before Dolly passed that she approved this song specifically for me,” Stiles said during the rehearsal package before the dance. “I’m so honored to be dancing to her music and honoring her legacy, and I want to make her proud.”

Afterward, co-host Julianne Hough asked Stiles what performing to Parton’s song meant to her, with the actress revealing that the thumbs-up from the country icon was super important for her and Sosa. “It was the first song we talked about,” Stiles revealed of the song she chose on the night when the theme was No. 1 songs in the year they were born; “9 to 5” topped the Billboard singles chart on Feb. 21, 1981. “I wanted it so badly. We didn’t know what was gonna happen. She cleared it, and I just feel so honored to honor Dolly. She’s such a powerhouse. And the song is so great. Like, it’s such an anthem. And, yeah, what a legend. She was great.”

The pair earned a solid score of 18 out of 30, putting her in third place for the night behind No. 1 Maura Higgins of The Traitors, The Rookie star and dancer Jenna Dewan and Olympic gold medal skater Amber Glenn.