Joshua Allen, who was crowned the Season 4 winner of So You Think You Can Dance in 2008, has died at 36 years old. TMZ is reporting that Allen died after being hit by a train on Sept. 30. The sad news came via a family member, who’s asking for “privacy and prayers” from fans.
Hailing from Fort Worth, TX, Allen won $250,000 as the Season 4 winner of SYTYCD. That season, Stephen “tWtich” Boss, who died by suicide at age 40 in late 2022, was the runner-up.
Choreographer Emmanuel Hurd paid tribute to Joshua Allen
Choreographer Emmanuel Hurd honored Allen’s life via a photo montage on Instagram: “I can’t wrap my head around this…Josh…my brotha. There are no words,” Hurd wrote. “You were the life of the party. You were Batman. Champion. One of the realest people I ever met. Kept it a stack every time and would make it right if you fell short. A real King. This one hurts deep. I know you’re with Stephen now and that brings me comfort. I love you bro. IVEVER.”
Joshua Allen appeared in ‘Step Up 3D’ and the 2011 remake of ‘Footloose’
Alongside Boss and another SYTYCD finalist, Katee Shean, Allen appeared in 2010’s Step Up 3D, the third installment in the Step Up film series. He also appeared in the 2011 remake of Footloose.
In addition to serving as a choreographer in Season 2 of Oxygen’s short-lived Dance Your Ass Off, Allen appeared in commercials for Honda and McDonald’s, as well as FX’s American Horror Story, NBC’s Community and Nickelodeon’s Jump Around.
Joshua Allen paid tribute to Malcolm-Jamal Warner when he died in July 2025
In his final Instagram post, Allen paid tribute to Malcolm-Jamal Warner when he died from an accidental drowning in Costa Rica on July 21, 2025. At the time, Allen shared photo of himself with The Cosby Show star with a caption that read, “Fly high King #gonetoosoon.”