Cristan Lee Judd (born 1968-1970) is an American actor, dancer, and choreographer known for his brief marriage to Jennifer Lopez.

Dance career

At age 21, Judd became interested in dance. Within a year, he switched jobs and began dancing professionally with Disney. He was hired to dance with

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

for the

1995 MTV Video Music Awards The 1995 MTV Video Music Awards aired live on September 7, 1995, honoring the best music videos from June 16, 1994, to June 15, 1995. The show was hosted by Dennis Miller at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. David Sandlin was commissioned to ...

and then danced with Jackson on the HIStory Tour, eventually becoming lead dancer for the tour. In 1999, he performed at the

Billboard Music Awards The ''Billboard'' Music Awards are honors given out annually by ''Billboard'', a publication covering the music business and a music popularity chart. The ''Billboard'' Music Awards show has been held annually since 1990, with the exception of t ...

with

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

, the MTV Music Awards with N'SYNC, and in 2000 at the American Music Awards with

Enrique Iglesias Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler (; (born 8 May 1975) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. He started his recording career in the mid-1990s on the Mexican indie label Fonovisa and became the bestselling Spanish-language act of the decade. By th ...

and

Brian McKnight Brian Kelly McKnight (born June 5, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, record producer, radio host and multi-instrumentalist. He is most recognized for his strong head voice, high belting range and melisma. McKnight is known for ...

, and for "Best Song" nominee ''That Thing You Do'' at the 69th Annual Academy Awards. Judd teamed up for the first time with choreographer Eddie Garcia, a collaboration that continues to this day, to choreograph the 2000 Tour for Jordan Knight. Judd choreographed numerous music videos including ''My Way'' for

Usher Usher may refer to: Several jobs which originally involved directing people and ensuring people are in the correct place: * Usher (occupation) ** Church usher ** Wedding usher, one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony ** Fiel ...

, ''Jump, Jive, & Wail'' for the Brian Setzer Orchestra, ''If I Could Go'' for

Angie Martinez Angela Martinez (born January 9, 1971) is an American radio personality, rapper, singer, and actress. Nicknamed "The Voice of New York" during her two-decade tenure at New York City station HOT 97 (WQHT), she left that position in 2014 to jo ...

and ''Tango'' for

Julio Iglesias Julio José Iglesias de la Cueva (; born 23 September 1943) is a Spanish singer, songwriter and former professional footballer. Iglesias is recognized as the most commercially successful Spanish singer in the world and one of the top record ...

. He also directed the music video, ''Ain't It Funny-Remix'', with

Ja Rule Jeffrey Bruce Atkins (born February 29, 1976), better known by his stage name Ja Rule (), is an American rapper and actor. Born and raised in New York City, he debuted in 1999 with '' Venni Vetti Vecci'' and its lead single " Holla Holla". Dur ...

. Judd then became creative director for Handprint Entertainment, overseeing a $5 million budget and delivering Jennifer Lopez's NBC concert special '' Let's Get Loud (DVD)'', which was filmed at the

Roberto Clemente Coliseum Roberto Clemente Coliseum ( Spanish: ''Coliseo Roberto Clemente'') is a sports and concert arena located in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It was, for many years, Puerto Rico's largest indoor event facility, and remains one of the largest. General info ...

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan (, , ; Spanish for "Saint John") is the capital city and most populous municipality in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2020 census, it is the 57th-largest city under the ju ...

. Judd appeared as a back-up dancer for ex-wife, Jennifer Lopez's music videos '' Love Don't Cost a Thing'', ''

Play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

'', and '' I'm Real'', and appeared in her '' I'm Gonna Be Alright'' video. He and Garcia produced an interactive dance DVD released in summer 2005, and has prepared the Midnight Fantasy musical for the Luxor Resort in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish language, Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the List of United States cities by population, 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the U.S. state, state of Neva ...

. In 2009, Judd took part in the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards opening dance tribute to former mentor Michael Jackson. Judd took part in the dance performance of " Scream", the duet number between Michael and Michael's sister

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreog ...

; Janet danced alongside Judd and other famous dance choreographers.

Acting

Judd guest-starred on '' Unfabulous'', '' Eve'', '' Half & Half'', '' Everybody Loves Raymond'', '' Bringing Down the House'', and ''

Goyband ''Goyband'' or ''Falling Star'' is a 2008 American independent comedy film directed by Christopher Grimm, starring Adam Pascal. The film premiered at the 2008 Jerusalem Jewish Film Festival. Plot Fading from the spotlight of his late 1990s mega- ...

''.

Reality television

Judd's television debut was on the first season of the American series of '' I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!'' He beat out all the other contestants, earning $200,000 for the

Make-a-Wish Foundation The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in the United States that helps fulfill the wishes of children with a critical illness between the ages of and 18 years old. Make-A-Wish was founded in 1980 and headquar ...

when he was crowned "King of the Jungle" in a viewer vote. In 2006, Judd hosted the reality version of ''

Dirty Dancing ''Dirty Dancing'' is a 1987 American romantic drama dance film written by Eleanor Bergstein, produced by Linda Gottlieb, and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, it tells the story of Frances "Baby" Housema ...

'', and in 2008 was a judge on

Lifetime Lifetime may refer to: * Life expectancy, the length of time a person is expected to remain alive Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Lifetime (band), a rock band from New Jersey * ''Life Time'' (Rollins Band album), by Rollins Band * ...

's ''

Your Mama Don't Dance "Your Mama Don't Dance" is a hit 1972 song by the rock duo Loggins and Messina. Released on their self-titled album '' Loggins and Messina'', it reached number four on the ''Billboard'' pop chart and number 19 on the ''Billboard'' Easy Listeni ...

''. In 2008, Judd appeared in ''

Keeping Up with the Kardashians ''Keeping Up with the Kardashians'' (often abbreviated ''KUWTK'') is an American reality television series which focused on the personal and professional lives of the Kardashian–Jenner blended family, airing between 2007 and 2021. Its prem ...

'' for season two, episode four titled "Kris the Cheerleader". Kris Jenner was invited to try out to be a cheerleader for a 40+ group who performed during halftime shows. After Jenner's tryout, the team asked her to practice the routine. Jenner then called her "secret weapon", Judd. Judd then worked with Kris Jenner on her moves using his skill set as a choreographer. In 2009, Judd appeared on the reality TV series ''

Bad Girls Club ''Bad Girls Club'' (abbreviated ''BGC'') is an American reality television series created by Jonathan Murray for the Oxygen network in the United States. The show focused on the altercations and physical confrontations of seven aggressive, ...

'' where he choreographed their opening dance performance for FANTASY, an adult dance revue at the Luxor hotel. In 2012, he appeared in ''

The Real Housewives of New Jersey ''The Real Housewives of New Jersey'' (abbreviated ''RHONJ'') is an American reality television series that premiered on May 12, 2009, on Bravo. Developed as the fourth installment of ''The Real Housewives'' franchise, it has aired twelve seaso ...

'', as a choreographer hired by Melissa Gorga. In 2013, Judd was announced as one of the judges in the third series of '' New Zealand's Got Talent''.

Personal life

Judd met Jennifer Lopez in Spain in late 2000 when he was hired to direct her music video for " Love Don't Cost a Thing". He composed the song, "Alive", which was selected as the theme song for the movie '' Enough''. The two married on September 29, 2001. The marriage ended over a year later. Judd married Kelly A. Wolfe in

Laguna Beach, California Laguna Beach (; ''Laguna'', Spanish for "Lagoon") is a seaside resort city located in southern Orange County, California, in the United States. It is known for its mild year-round climate, scenic coves, environmental preservation efforts, and ...

in November 2009. They have a daughter.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Judd, Cris Living people American choreographers American male actors American male actors of Filipino descent American people of Kapampangan descent Kapampangan people I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! winners Participants in American reality television series Place of birth missing (living people) 1968 births