Watch the ‘Jersey Shore’ Fam Scramble to Support Vinny Guadagnino After ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Elimination in Exclusive Sneak Peek

It’s clear the Jersey Shore: Family Vacation fam didn’t expect Vinny Guadagnino’s Dancing With the Stars elimination. In a PopCulture.com exclusive sneak peek of Thursday’s all-new episode of the MTV show, Pauly D, Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino, Angelina Pivarnick, Deena Cortese and the rest of their families scramble to switch up their congratulatory surprise for Vinny after he and pro partner Koko Iwasaki were eliminated ahead of the DWTS Season 31 semi-finals.

Calling Vinny up, Pauly invites his recently-eliminated bestie to come down to the suite where the rest of the Jersey Shore crew is staying – sans Jenni “JWOWW” Farley and Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi. Deena notes after Pauly hangs up the phone just how down Vinny sounds, and Pauly tells the rest of the room, “No one say the word dance until he does.”

The Jersey Shore stars’ plan to let Vinny have some space after his loss is turned on its head, however, when the cake Pauly previously ordered for his pal is delivered to their room – and it reads, “Congrats on the Semifinals Vin!” While Mike is more concerned about whether or not the cake is his favorite Funfetti, Pauly is kicking himself for forgetting about his preemptive congratulatory gift.

“Well, my friend, don’t we feel stupid?” he asks the camera. “I ordered him some celebratory balloons and a nice cake, congratulating him on making it to the semi-finals. We had a pivot.” As Vinny is actively making his way down to the suite, the rest of his Jersey Shore family is hustling to change the cake’s message from “semifinals” to “success.” 

“You’re making it worse,” Deena’s husband, Chris Buckner, warns as she steps in to redecorate the cake, as she insists, “I’m not making it worse.” As someone else suggests adding a flower to cover the messy change, Mike suggests, “Can I eat that part? Maybe I could eat that part.” It’s all cake chaos until Vinny enters the suite – and the rest of his friends act as if nothing happened. 

“Hi, Vin! Congrats on makin’ it so far,” Pauly tells Vinny, as Deena gushes, “Congrats on doing so well, we’re so proud of you!” Vinny appreciates the kind gesture but isn’t convinced by their calm demeanor, confiding to the camera that he has a pretty good idea of what just went down. “My cake says, ‘Congrats.’ Something is scratched out,” he says. “Probably said, ‘Congrats on getting to the semi-finals,’ but it’s the thought that counts. I got the best fam.” He jokes, “Angelina’s probably throwing this at someone later.”

Reuniting with his friends is “amazing” after all the “drama” of Dancing With the Stars, Vinny tells the group of well-wishers. And it’s clear he can take a little ribbing when Pauly says of the night’s plans, “It was supposed to be a Vinny celebratory party, but now he didn’t make it, so…” The Jersey Shore fam has one last surprise for Vinny up their sleeves as well – a makeshift dance studio they set up in their suite for him to practice with his partner.

While Vinny admits it would have been “very challenging” to learn two dances in the tiny space, he of course appreciates the “nice gesture,” but jokes, “I’m actually happy as hell that I don’t have to use this dance studio.” The studio won’t go totally unused, however, as Deena and Angelina both step up to learn some ballroom moves from Vinny. “Congratulations, you’re dancing without the stars,” Pauly quips. Jersey Shore: Family Vacation airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on MTV.