Julianne Hough Denies Wedding Bells, Focuses on New Film

Julianne Hough has been quietly dating 'American Idol' host Ryan Seacrest for the past few months, but says speculation that the two are soon to tie the knot is completely unfounded.

"Well, that's news to me, and I think it's news to him!" she tells Entertainment Tonight of the wedding rumors. But their blossoming romance sure seems to be going strong. Admitting that they enjoyed a lavish romantic getaway on a private yacht over the summer, Julianne says their entire vacation can be summed up very simply: "Eating, eating, eating, eating," she jokes. "I definitely had to get into shape for this movie after that little trip. But it was amazing!"

That movie is the remake of the 1984 hit, 'Footloose.' Julianne has the leading female role of Ariel Moore, who falls for small-town newcomer Ren MacCormack. She says the film, which depicts determined youth fighting to bring music and dancing to a conservative religious town, closely mirrors her own life growing up.

"I wanted attention," she acknowledges of her youth as a Mormon in Utah. "I wasn't allowed to do this and this ... and looking back at it now, obviously it was very appropriate and good, but at the time I wanted to rebel."

The long-awaited movie, which began casting in 2007, faced several director and cast changes before finally hitting the set in late July. Julianne insists it will be worth the wait. "Everybody's read so much about it, and [they're thinking], 'Would they just shoot this movie already?'" she tells The Boot. "But I could not be more excited now than before because there has been so much direction and growth through the movie. It was going to be this singing, dancing, big shebang movie, and now it's going to be more like the original and really, really holding all the key points from the movie. It's great for me, because I feel like it's a real performance, acting piece for me. I don't sing or dance in it, so it's going to be really fun and challenging."

The former 'Dancing With the Stars' cast member, who had previously announced she would return to the show before facing scheduling conflicts, says she was immensely proud to sit on the sidelines and watch her brother, pro-dancer Derek Hough, dance with actress Jennifer Grey this season. "Growing up watching 'Dirty Dancing,' she [Jennifer] was a huge inspiration to me to be a dancer, to be an actress, to follow my dreams -- and to watch her and my brother dance, it was so emotional, very inspiring. She just was beautiful and stunning; it was just really beautiful to watch."

In addition to releasing her sophomore album, 'Wildfire,' next month, Julianne will also have her big-screen debut in another movie, 'Burlesque,' also starring Cher and Christina Aguilera. 'Burlesque' hits theaters November 24.

Watch Julianne and Derek sing live together in our studio below.

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