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Joseph Baena is all set to wear his dancing shoes as he participates on Season 31 of Dancing With The Stars (DWTS). After airing on ABC for the past 30 seasons, the hit show is coming to Disney+, making it the first-ever live show on the streaming platform. The brand new season is all set to premiere on Monday, September 19, 2022, and will see contestants from varied backgrounds and unique personalities.
Joseph Baena is the son of actor and former bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger. He opened up about finding out his father's identity on Men's Health March Issue cover story. While revealing more details about his biological father, he also opened up about his mother. Schwarzenegger fathered Baena with his then housekeeper, Mildred Patricia Baena, out of wedlock.
Keep reading to find out more details about Joseph Baena.
More details on DWTS star Joseph Baena explored
Creating one's own mark while being related to someone famous is a difficult journey. Joseph Baena is one among them. The DWTS contestant, being the son of a famous personality like Arnold Schwarzenegger, definitely put more eyes on him than he ever wished for. However, Baena has managed to create his own niche and is proving his worth by exploring his dancing skills in the competition.
Here are 5 things to know about Joseph Baena.
1) He was 13 years old when he found out his father's identity
In the interivew with Men's Health, Baena reminisced about the time he found out who his father was. His mother, Guatemalan-born Mildred Baena, was the housekeeper for Arnold and his then-wife, Maria Shriver, when Joseph was born in 1997. His father's identity was kept a secret until 2011, when the public found out that he was Arnold Schwarzenegger's son. Baena said:
"I remember the day very vividly. I was in the eighth grade. Fifth or sixth period. And I get called out of class to leave. And my mom's there, and she's like, 'We gotta go—everyone is finding out about you and who your father is.'"
Baena mentioned that it was a period of utmost transformation as he saw numerous news trucks swarm around the house and photographers hounding the family. He said:
“Your body’s transforming; your mind is transforming. And now my life transformed before my eyes.”
2) Baena learnt to cook from his mother Mildren Patricia
Baena grew up with his mother and siblings in Bakersfield, California. He remembered it being a "humble home" where he learnt to cook with his mother, speaking Spanish with his siblings and celebrating the family's Guatemalan heritage through cultural events, food and music. The DWTS star said:
“That’s a huge part of me. My mom’s whole side is Guatemalan; we have a lot of Colombian family. Nearly everyone on that side is Latin American."
With his home surrounded by press, Baena revealed that he and his mother took a road trip, hiding out with relatives in Texas. However, throughout this tumultuous time, the mother-son duo supported each other. He confessed:
“She was really the only person I had, and I was really the only person that she had. No one knew, and everyone wanted the details. We had each other’s backs.”
3) Baena's acting career was filled with memorable experiences
With the ever-changing tides of the Hollywood film industry, the DWTS star was initially unsure of how to proceed in his acting career. In the interview with the publication, Baena confessed that he valued hardwork and honor like his father and if he used the Schwarzenegger name, he would not earn anything. This led him to drop his father's last name and retain his individuality.
With his father's guidance, he reached out to Eric Morris, an acting coach who had helped Schwarzenegger to a Golden Globe for 1976’s Stay Hungry. Baena found a passion for the stage when he played Biff on Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. This role helped the star psychologically, as he was more in tune with his next roles.
His other works include Called to Duty: The Last Airshow, Terminator 2 Remake with Joseph Baena: Bad to the Bone (2016) and Encounters.
Upon asking where he saw himself in ten years, Baena told Men's Health:
“I’m an award-winning actor with lots of real estate experience, and I’m on a boat in Miami, sipping a mai tai with my buddies, getting ready for the next movie."
4) Baena shares a great relationship with his father
Irrespective of when he found out about his father, Baena and Schwarzenegger share a deep, meaningful and respectful relationship. He also kept his identity, passion and ambition separate from his father's and confessed to doing what he loved to do. In the interview, the DWTS star said:
“It took a little bit for me to realize that I don’t have to do what my dad did. I don’t have to get into acting or bodybuilding. I’m very motivated and driven. I’m happy about my relationship with my dad. But I’m more happy that I am finding joy in what I’m doing and that I’m doing exactly what I’ve always dreamed about."
Sharing more about the rapport he shared with his father, Baena said:
“A lot of guys struggle with trying to make their dad proud or trying to get out of their dad’s shadow. But as long as you’re doing what you want to do, then that all comes. Of course, maybe those guys don’t have such nice dads.”
5) Education, Job and Social Media
Joseph Baena was born in Los Angeles on October 2, 1997. The DWTS star attended Pepperdine University following his high school graduation in 2015. As per his LinkedIn profile, he pursued a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree from the university until 2019.
He then worked as an executive assistant at a real estate agency called ARIA Properties and is currently employed by the same company as a real-estate agent. The star also has a massive 379K followers on Instagram and constantly updates viewers with his training sessions, time with family and travel photos.
Viewers can stream the two-hour special DWTS episode on Monday night from 8.00 to 10.00 pm ET. The new season will be hosted by Tyra Banks and former DWTS winner Alfonso Ribiero. Other cast members include Teresa Giudice, Gabby Windey, Cheryl Ladd, Charlie D'Amelio, and Daniel Durant among many others.
