A Strictly Come Dancing star could become a ‘global sensation and earn millions of pounds’ with his string of side projects.
Earlier this week it was reported that professional dancer Johannes Radebe would be leaving the long-running BBC series as he had ‘just has too much to juggle alongside the contest’.
Johannes, 37, joined the show in 2018 and has since competed with Catherine Tyldesley, Caroline Quentin, John Whaite, Ellie Taylor and Annabel Croft.
This season he is also still striving towards taking out the Glitterball Trophy with Gladiators star Montell Douglas, even if they did land in the bottom two last week.
Posting a video alongside her earlier this week, he shut down the rumours of his exit, sharing: ‘I’m going nowhere, nowhere. It’s a lie. Liza Minelli lies.’
However, a public relations expert said that Johannes projects away from Strictly could see him become a household name globally too.
Aside from appearing in a huge 250-show tour of Kinky Boots around the UK and Ireland next year, his memoir JoJo: Finally Home, which charts his life growing up in poverty and facing prejudice in South Africa to finding success as a dance champion and TV star, is also being turned into a movie.
Lynn Carratt, speaking on behalf of Fruity Slots, told Metro that appearing on Strictly gave dancers a ‘regular income that propels you to millions of viewers every week on prime-time TV’.
She added that there was ‘a lot of money that can be made off the back of appearing on the show’.
Speaking about the success of Johannes’ memoir, she said it was ‘quite the achievement given the book was only released in August this year’ and became an instant bestseller.
‘A group of influential figures in Hollywood are producing his memoir, which has the potential to elevate his status across the pond,’ she explained.
‘If the film becomes a success in the USA, it could lead to him a global sensation and earning him millions of pounds.’
Due to the Kinky Boots tour, Johannes is unable to appear in the official Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour which also kicks off in January with most of the pros taking part.
However, she said it ‘wasn’t a huge deal as not every professional participates in it every year’.
Although his workload will be ‘demanding’ he should be able to juggle his commitments to Kinky Boots and his tole as an executive producer and choreographer on his film.
‘While Kinky Boots may not pay as much as his TV work, it’s an opportunity to perform for diverse audiences each night, which Johannes will relish,’ she said.
‘If he succeeds in the USA with the film of his memoir, he could potentially earn millions from his film and other commitments in the coming years,’ she added.
Carratt also said going forward, Johannes could also capitalise on his popularity with the public by ‘expanding his TV presence and hosting his own show’.
‘He has already appeared on some reputable reality shows in the past like MasterChef and he even won the celebrity version of the Great British Sewing Bee. I could see him furthering his career in the USA and starring in musical films,’ she added.
Before joining Strictly, Johannes was a professional on the South African version of the show.
In 2021 he appeared as a contestant on Celebrity MasterChef and the following year choreographed the West End-themed Rusical on the first series of RuPaul’s Drag Race: UK vs. the World.
In 2022 he also won the Celebrity Christmas Special of BBC’s The Great British Sewing Bee, which he won, while earlier this year he made a cameo in the Doctor Who episode The Devil’s Chord alongside Shirley Ballas.
When shutting down the reports he was quitting Strictly, he added: ‘I’m not going nowhere! The story isn’t true – I love Strictly, and I want to do this beautiful show for as long as they want me – and the body will allow.
‘I have Kinky Boots and other work in the pipeline yes, but nothing will take me away. Love you all Jojo Xx’ he wrote in the caption.
Strictly Come Dancing continues on Saturday at 6.35pm on BBC One.
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