From his performance on Dancing With the Stars, you could never guess that John Schneider's personal life is in serious trouble.
The Dukes of Hazzard star was all smiles as he hit the stage with dance pro Emma Slater at his side on Monday.
The pair debuted with a solid foxtrot that kept them safe from elimination in week one, but on the results night Schneider shared what he's really concerned about.
Schneider's Strong Debut
Schneider said he kept "loosey goosey" during his first make-or-break performance on the reality show.
"Because I was having fun," he explained, "not because my teacher [Slater] didn't beat it into me."
After scoring an 18/30 from the judges, Schneider told host Erin Andrews he was "so excited to be here."
"I'm hoping that I will do my family proud, I'll do my love over there proud," he added, meaning his current girlfriend, Alicia Allain.
"And maybe my children will speak to me again."
That comment revealed a lot about Schneider's personal life, which has been pretty rocky in recent years.
The actor's wife of more than two decades and the mother of his three children, Elvira Castle, divorced Schneider in 2014, citing irreconcilable differences.
TMZ reported that Schneider had been ordered to pay nearly $19,000 a month in alimony, and when he racked up more than $150,000 in debt to Castle this year, Schneider was set to jail.
An Embarrassing Trip To Jail
While it's been months since Schneider was released from jail in June, his time behind bars is obviously still weighing on him.
He called the experience "life-changing," and said it was like "nothing like I ever imagined it was going to be."
"If I had it [money], I would've given it to her just to let this go away but I don't have it," he told Fox News.
"I was arrested, I was searched, I was handcuffed, I had my wallet and my phone and they took my belt and shoelaces and it was put into a plastic bag."
Schneider was released later the same day due to overcrowding, but his legal battle is still ongoing.
After having a sentence for contempt of court suspended in favor of orders to pay back his ex-wife, Schneider was forced to write back to the judge begging for his original jail sentence because he claimed to be broke.
"I am leveraged to the max," he wrote, while claiming he wanted to do "what I believe is "˜right' throughout this whole process."
"I am willing and able to accept the punishment for my actions/inactions as to this matter and I request this court to impose such sentence without further delay," Schneider added.
But Schneider won't be heading back to jail anytime soon - his ex-wife's lawyers are convinced he has the money, and won't let him off the hook.
In the meantime, Schneider will be balancing his 240 hours of community service with his dance lessons, hoping to make his children proud and bring home the Mirrorball Trophy.
"I've lost 15 pounds," Schneider said about his grueling workout regimen.
"It's really crazy. I don't hurt as bad as I did. After the first week, I felt I'd been run over by a bus or something. And getting up in the morning was hard to do."
