Top scores, then axed: star's shock exit after Janet tribute

Jenna Dewan is out of Dancing With the Stars, and nobody saw it coming. The Step Up star, 45, and pro partner Val Chmerkovskiy were eliminated on Tuesday's Grammy Night, despite getting the second-highest scores from the judges.

Earlier in the show, Janet Jackson had surprised her with a message, and Dewan was in tears.

The pair danced a jazz routine to Jackson's 2001 hit "All for You", earning 28 out of 30 from judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli.

They also won their dance battle against Tatyana Ali and pro Jan Ravnik, which earned two bonus points. It wasn't enough to get them to the Nov. 17 semi-finals.

Co-host Julianne Hough was nearly speechless reading out the result. "You've made it this far," she said. "It's shocking, to say the least."

The message from Janet

The song was no random pick. Before Step Up made her famous, Dewan was one of Jackson's backup dancers, in the "Doesn't Really Matter" and "All for You" music videos and on tour.

Jackson, who rarely makes appearances these days, sent a video message before the routine.

"I cannot wait to watch you perform tonight," the singer, 60, said. "You're performing to 'All for You.' I feel so honored all for you."

Then she went back to the old days. "Weren't those such fun times we had back then during those days for the All for You Tour?" Jackson said. "I miss you. I love you."

She told Dewan the routine would be "incredible" and signed off with a plan: "Let's get together when I'm back in L.A."

Dewan wiped tears from her eyes, according to E! News. In a video package before the dance, she called Jackson "the start of my dance career".

"Putting Grammys and Janet Jackson together, this is a full circle moment," she said. "It makes me really, really happy and emotional that I get this opportunity, so this dance cannot be anything but perfect."

'All love'

It has been a bumpy season. Dewan and Chmerkovskiy were early front-runners, but her dance background sparked backlash from some fans, Us Weekly reports, and he was suspended for a week over comments he made to Inaba.

Dewan hinted that played a part. "I know this was a particularly tough week for a lot of the online noise," she told Extra, "but I know that we went out there and had the best time of our life."

On the night she thanked her family, who came to the ballroom every week, and fiancé Steve Kazee. "Dancing again, getting to share my joy with my family, who's over here every single night," she said, before turning to Kazee. "I had a great time. And I loved getting to share that with the world. Honestly, all love."

Chmerkovskiy, 40, called it "definitely a sad result" but said he had no regrets. "Every week is a shocker," he told Extra.

On Instagram he posted a farewell to his partner. "You've been exactly what I imagined. The absolute best!" he wrote. "Thank you for the opportunity to be by your side through this entire process. I'll never forget it."

In the video, he had one more promise for her: "We'll dance anyway. We don't need your votes. We can still dance."

Dewan says she'll be cheering on the couples left in the competition. "You can't count anyone out," she said. "Can't wait to watch."