Entertainment TV Cheryl Ladd Says 'It's Really Hard' Moving On After Being in 'DWTS' 's Bottom 2, but 'There Are No Tears in Dancing' The Charlie's Angels alum and her partner Louis Van Amstel landed at the bottom of the leader board during Dancing with the Stars' Elvis Night By Dana Rose Falcone Dana Rose Falcone Dana Rose Falcone is a Staff Writer covering TV at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE for seven years. Dana Rose's work has previously appeared in Entertainment Weekly, Men's Fitness and Us Weekly. People Editorial Guidelines Published on October 3, 2022 01:13PM EDT Cheryl Ladd admits she might've underestimated Dancing with the Stars. "It's all so technical," the season 31 competitor, 71, tells PEOPLE. "It's harder than I thought it was going to be." The Charlie's Angels alum calls "trying to learn dance and do it properly in five days," the most difficult part of the show. Three weeks of competing on Dancing with the Stars has left Ladd — and her ego — slightly bruised. "I feel a little banged up, to be honest, but not too bad," she says. "I'm icing one knee that is not terrible. I don't want it to get worse, so I just ice it every day. Other than that, I'm doing pretty well physically." Andrew Eccles/abc Dancing with the Stars Recap: Elvis Night Brings a Kiss, a Flirtation and a Shocking Elimination Ladd and her partner Louis Van Amstel landed in the bottom two — then were ultimately saved by the judges — after their Elvis Night tango to "A Little Less Conversation" last week. "It was not a good feeling, but I messed up this whole section," Ladd says. "I was so mad at myself, so disappointed. It's really hard to pick yourself up and say, 'That's over, don't think about it anymore.' You've got to take the consequences. But I sure don't want to be in the bottom two again." The actress and Van Amstel, who returned to DWTS season 31 after seven years, practiced intensely to perform what Ladd describes as a "smooth and sassy" Rumba on Monday's Bond Night. Ladd has an extra special reason why she wants to succeed Monday. "I had gotten to meet Sean Connery and chat with him — we actually played golf in the same golf tournament in Scotland," she says. "We had a mutual friend, so we sat at the same dinner table. It was really interesting because Sean Connery, to me, is the ultimate James Bond." RELATED VIDEO: DWTS Pros Jenna Johnson and Val Chmerkovskiy Expecting Their First Baby Together Ladd hopes to make it past Bond Night so she can dance to "When You Wish Upon a Star" on Disney Night. She also teases "a Charlie's Angels kind of thing" happening down the line and looks forward to the show's Prom Night. "I never got to go to prom, because I was singing my senior year of high school," Ladd says. Dancing with the Stars: Teresa Giudice, Wayne Brady, Selma Blair and More Celebs Join Season 31 Cast of Charlie’s Angels. To be able to go now with her longtime friend and partner Van Amstel, 50, means a lot to Ladd. "I love Louis. He's just such a wonderful person," Ladd gushes. "He has been so helpful to me to tell me what to expect, how it works, what it's going to take and what we need to do. We laugh a lot, and we, on occasion, cry. But not long. There are no tears in dancing!" Heidi D'Amelio Takes PEOPLE Behind the Scenes on the Set of Dancing with the Stars Ladd practices her routines at home, too, but likes to unwind with "a wonderful dinner and a glass of Prosecco," she says. Hopefully, Ladd and Van Amstel will have a reason to be popping bottles after Monday's performance. "I'm just very grateful we have a chance to dance again," she says. "It's a lot of hard work, but I'm loving it." Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up to date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories Dancing with the Stars airs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on Disney+.