Derek Hough and sister Julianne Hough share a special connection which, according to Robin Wright, can look a lot like marriage.
While attending the 2026 Golden Globe Awards at Los Angeles’ Beverly Hilton on Sunday, January 11, Wright, 59, spoke to Derek, 40, on the red carpet about her confusion over the siblings’ relationship.
“Wait, you’re the brother of Julianne, I love her,” the Girlfriend star said to Derek as he interviewed her for ExtraTV. “Can I tell you something? When I first saw her dance, I was like, ‘They’re married.’”
Derek accepted Wright’s admission with grace, reassuring her that “I’ve got that sometimes,” before she gushed over the pair. “You guys are amazing together. I follow you guys on Instagram and watch you guys move,” Wright told Derek, referring to the frequent joint dance videos with Julianne, 37, shared via their respective Instagram accounts.
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Wright’s confusion comes after Julianne, who works as the host of reality dancing TV series Dancing With the Stars alongside judge Derek, recently admitted that fans have also been confused over their dynamic in the past.
While interviewed for a September 2025 episode of the “Chicks in the Office” podcast, Julianne explained that she and her brother were tasked to perform a rumba together by Carrie Ann Inaba, one of Derek’s fellow judges, while taking part in a live DWTS tour. (A rumba is a Latin dance also referred to as a dance of “love.”)
Julianne recalled, “Our names in the program were ‘Derek and Julianne Hough,’ so everybody thought we were married and we were doing this rumba. When people found out we were brother [and] sister, I remember there was one venue … and we just heard, ‘That’s just wrong!”
Two months later, the siblings opened up about their relationship exclusively to Us Weekly. During a November 2025 interview, conducted just ahead of DWTS’ 20-year anniversary episode, the duo reflected on how much they’ve enjoyed working together. (Julianne danced as a pro for five seasons and judged for another five seasons before serving as cohost with Alfonso Ribeiro, while Derek spent 17 seasons as a pro before becoming a judge.)
“I actually want to give Jules her flowers. When she came on the show, she changed the trajectory of DWTS forever,” Derek told Us at the time. “She became the model of what we see now — that multifaceted dancer. She came in and disrupted the whole scene.”
Julianne shared equal praise for her brother, telling Us, “I’m Derek’s biggest fan. He just literally made me want to fall on the floor with all the compliments. He’s always the first person to recognize and see me for who I am. He always has my back, and I know I can trust that my brother is always there because he’s shown up that way.”
The pair also told Us that, like most brothers and sisters, sibling rivalry can rear its head at times. “When she went [on the show], I was like, “Oh, OK, now I have to go on,” Derek said before Julianne added, “He would smoke me in the Latin competitive dance world we [were in] as kids. But I was like, “Oh, you’re coming to my turf now.’”
