Elaine Hendrix revisits gruesome “DWTS” injury that saw her carried off on stretcher and required 16 shots

Ryan ColemanTue, November 3, 2026 at 10:32 PM UTC

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Alan Bersten and Elaine Hendrix on ‘Dancing With the Stars’ in 2025Credit: Disney/Eric McCandlessKey Points -

Elaine Hendrix is looking back at a gruesome rib injury she sustained on Dancing With the Stars season 34.

The Parent Trap star detailed how “doctors determined I tore a muscle, potentially even ripped it off” during rehearsals for last year’s Wicked Night.

“In order to keep trying to do the competition, I ended up getting 16 anesthetic shots,” Hendrix revealed, in addition to cryotherapy, acupuncture, and more.

After over 30 years in the industry, Elaine Hendrix knows that the show must go on. Sometimes that’s easier said than done.

The star of classic films like The Parent Trap and Superstar made it all the way to the finals on Dancing With the Stars season 34, which aired last fall. Hendrix and her pro partner, Alan Bersten, proved they were real forces to be reckoned with — even after Hendrix sustained a nasty rib injury before a command performance during week six’s Wicked Night.

That injury caused her to be carried off stage on a stretcher, forcing her to miss the following week’s Halloween Night. Still, Hendrix and Bersten persisted through another three weeks, earning them a spot toward the top on the final leaderboard.

Almost exactly a year later, the actress is sharing gruesome new details and the specs of her intensive recovery regimen.

“Doing Dancing With the Stars, I got injured in Wicked week. Lots of people have asked exactly what happened to my ribs, and even more people have asked how did I keep going through the season with a rib injury,” Hendrix opened a video shared to Instagram on Monday, and promptly supplied the answers.

“The doctors determined I tore a muscle, potentially even ripped it off the rib. But nothing was broken and no organs were affected, and that’s what was most important. So, in order to keep trying to do the competition, I ended up getting 16 anesthetic shots in the sides, front and back of my ribs to numb out the nerve ending,” Hendrix explained. “I got about as many Toradol shots, which is a high-powered pain reliever that doesn’t make you drowsy. That is used in the NFL! Good times.”

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Elaine Hendrix with her ‘DWTS’ partner Alan Bersten after sustaining a rib injury in 2025Credit: abc

The rib injury wasn’t the only obstacle Hendrix had to overcome on Wicked Night. During the rehearsal package played before Hendrix and Bersten’s dance, the pro noted, “We’re dancing a contemporary, and I want to portray the story like Elphaba did, where Elaine realizes she can trust herself to show she is stronger than her injuries.” Hendrix then shared how she had a titanium plate surgically inserted into her foot after a car accident, which posed an obvious challenge to executing fancy footwork.

“Because of my titanium joint, I ripped half the skin off the bottom of my right foot. Perfect for Halloween! It’s ghoulish,” she joked, with Bersten recalling how, during one of their Argentine tango rehearsal sessions, “all of the sudden, Elaine kind of throws, and she can’t move and can’t breathe and something happened with her rib.”

Before returning to the ballroom for Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Night in week eight, Hendrix thanked fans for their “palpable” support. “I just want you to know that first and foremost, I’m okay, and second of all, I’m ready to go and just thank you so much for all the love and support that you’re showing and thank you to the entire Dancing With the Stars team.”

Toward the end of the video that Hendrix shared with her 516,000 Instagram followers, the actress detailed the recovery regimen that ultimately got her back in ballroom shape.

“I saw my doctor regularly, and I also got massages, acupuncture. I did [cryotherapy], physical therapy, and every single night before bed, I did a hot bath, and then a cold bath. I made sure I was eating really well and getting as much sleep and rest as I possibly could. Recovery became just as much of a job as dancing was,” she shared.

Dancing With the Stars season 35 has seen its fair share of injuries, from Paralympian Ezra Frech’s pain at the site of his leg amputation, to pro Pasha Pashkov delivering an accidental blow to Olympian Amber Glenn’s face during rehearsals. But like Hendrix, they’ve both carried on toward the gold.

New episodes of Dancing With the Stars season 35 air live on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and Disney+.

on Entertainment Weekly

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