The show is called Dancing with the Stars, but during this week’s episode, all eyes were on a star who wasn’t competing at all. During the Sept. 30 episode of Dancing with the Stars season 34, WWE legend CM Punk surprised fans by popping up in the front row of the audience.
While it's not necessarily unusual for celebrities to cheer on friends from the audience, viewers didn’t expect to see the wrestling icon lending his support. Was he there for a friend, or is he just a secret fan of the show? It wouldn't be surprising if he were a fan. Dancing with the Stars has a way of pulling in viewers from all walks of life. But what is the real reason?
CM Punk shares a personal connection with one of the Dancing with the Stars season 34 contestants
While CM Punk could very well be a fan of the popular dance competition series, that's not the reason he was in the audience on last night's episode. As it turns out, he has a personal connection to one of the contestants. That contestant is Boy Meets World actress Danielle Fishel. According to TV Insider, CM Punk is close friends with Fishel's husband, film producer and actor Jensen Karp.
That said, he was there to cheer Fishel on and show his support as she tackled the competition, even while performing with a lingering hamstring injury. Shortly after Fishel and Pasha Pashkov's performance, CM Punk posted on his Instagram story, praising her determination and writing, "@DanielleFishel crushed it! With a bad hammy! Tough as nails!!!" Just an hour before, Fishel had uploaded her own Instagram story, showing her cheering section in the audience, which included not only CM Punk but also other well-known celebrities, such as George Lopez and Lauren Lapkus.
Fortunately, Fishel and Pashkov pulled off a solid enough performance in last night's episode, allowing them to advance to the next round. However, Lauren Jauregui and partner Brandon Armstrong didn’t fare as well and were ultimately eliminated from the competition.
CM Punk and Karp are longtime friends. We're talking close enough that Karp even helped CM Punk write a freestyle rap targeted at fellow pro wrestler John Cena for an episode of WWE SmackDown. It seems he's also pretty close with Fishel. Back in January 2025, Fishel attended the premiere of WWE Raw on Netflix, where she got to see CM Punk in action. She even shared several photos from the event on her Instagram page. One of those was of CM Punk. He even got a shout-out in the post's caption! So, yes, I'd say that they share a friendly bond.
Dancing with the Stars season 34 is set to return with its fourth episode on ABC on Oct. 7.