Joey Graziadei, the former Bachelor star who won Dancing With the Stars Season 33 alongside professional dancer Jenna Johnson, is pushing back firmly against ongoing romance rumors — even months after the season ended.
Graziadei made his feelings clear in a recent episode of the Boyfriend Material with Harry Jowsey podcast, acknowledging that despite his public engagement to Kelsey Anderson and his efforts to avoid showmance speculation, fans continue to question the nature of his connection with Johnson.
“The hardest part is… when there’s enough comments,” he explained, describing how even casual posts by Johnson can spark unfounded rumors. Graziadei pointed out that being connected onstage is literally part of the job on DWTS — fostering chemistry and synchronization is essential to competitive performances — and that this often gets misread as something more.
Graziadei said he was initially relieved when producers paired him with Johnson because she was happily married to fellow DWTS pro Val Chmerkovskiy. He thought that clear real-world relationship context would prevent gossip, but quickly learned that fans were still eager to read between the lines.
“I asked to be paired with someone who was in a successful and healthy relationship to avoid this,” Graziadei revealed in earlier interviews, underscoring how concerned he was about preserving his real-life relationship while competing.
Even so, the speculation didn’t stop. Season 33 of Dancing With the Stars wasn’t short on on-air chemistry among couples, and viewers have historically latched onto that to fuel dating rumors — sometimes regardless of the facts.
Graziadei, who proposed to Anderson on The Bachelor Season 28 and has publicly celebrated their engagement, defended both his commitment to her and his professional relationship with Johnson, emphasizing that fans should celebrate talent and performance instead of inventing stories.
In the end, Graziadei says he and Anderson are stronger for having weathered the chatter. “If we can get through that,” he noted, “we can get through anything.”
