At the end of a long day, sometimes the best way to feel like you're living your best life is with some comfy PJ's, a glass of wine, and gratuitous reality television. In our series "Not-So-Guilty Pleasures," we remove the "guilt" and break down the latest happenings in your favorite TV indulgences.
- After Christie Brinkley broke her arm and had to exit season 28 of Dancing with the Stars, her daughter Sailor Brinkley-Cook took her place.
- The supermodel watched from the sidelines as her daughter danced a foxtrot to ex-husband Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl" during Monday night's premiere.
- The mother-daughter duo shared a sweet moment after the dance was over that had both of them on the brink of tears.
Christie Brinkley was hands down the proudest person in the room after watching daughter Sailor Brinkley-Cook perform on the Dancing with the Stars season 28 premiere.
The supermodel, 65, was originally paired with pro Val Chmerkovskiy but fell and broke her arm during rehearsals. The solution? She asked her 21-year-old daughter to step in just three days before the premiere, after mom had rehearsed for three weeks.
"I have never danced before," Brinkley-Cook said during her first rehearsal with Chmerkovskiy. "Here I am and it's scary but I feel this adrenaline rush from wanting to pay homage to my mom. This is for you, mom."
During the premiere, Sailor wore a white floor-length gown, which was originally designed for her mom, and danced a foxtrot to Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl." How appropriate considering Brinkley starred in the music video for the song, and was married to Joel for almost 10 years—they have a daughter together, Alexa Ray Joel, 33.
Right after Sailor stopped dancing, the two shared a sweet embrace as they both held back tears.
"I'm so proud of her. I'm so proud of you, Sailor," Brinkley said during the episode.
Sailor ended up scoring 18/30 from judges Len Goodman, Bruno Tonioli, and Carrie Ann Inaba, putting her in fourth place with James van der Beek, Hannah Brown, and Lauren Alaina rounding out the top three.
After fans saw the mother-daughter duo together, they couldn't help but express just how much they look alike and tweeted some reactions.
"So impressed by Sailor tonight. And her dancing to Uptown Girl with her mom sitting in the audience is bringing back all kinds of nostalgia for me," @GivLivLuvGro wrote.
"Sailor is a spitting beautiful image of Christie!," @DEANNAAB wrote.
@lmk_nyc wrote "My god, Sailor is a mini-Christie."
Ahead of the premiere, Brinkley took to Instagram to provide more backstory on her injury, and express her enthusiasm for her daughter. "Sailor always meets her challenges head on and realized she did not want to be defined by her fears so with just hours to learn my routine she is turning my defeat or should i say two left feat into her own victory of courage!" she wrote. "So Ladies and Gents I give you my beautiful Sunflower Sailor Lee. And i think you are all going to have a blast together on this season of @dancingabc !"
Brinkley-Cook also posted on Instagram, thanking everyone, including her mom, who helped her come this far.
"To my incredible partner @valentin for being so patient, my mama for being so courageous and inspiring, the whole dancing with the stars cast and crew for their kindness, & everyone who tuned in and showed so much love and support," she wrote. "So incredibly grateful to have had this moment. The journey’s just getting started!"
With such a dramatic start to the season, we can't wait to see how Brinkley-Cook does and what other mother-daughter moments viewers will get to see.
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As the Lifestyle Writer at OprahMag.com, I cover beauty, style, relationships & love, work & money, health, and food. When I'm not working, you'll find me watching Bravo, on the hunt for the perfect jeans and white tee, or taking my yorkie, Chloe, out for walks in Riverdale, New York.
