Mischa Barton took her final bow on Monday night during Week 3 of “Dancing With the Stars.”

“The O.C.” actress was given the ballroom boot, becoming the second Season 22 contestant from the hit ABC series to get eliminated from the hip-shaking competition. But Mischa and Artem Chigvinstev went out on a bittersweet note, getting sent home on the very same night that they gave their best performance.

“Tonight I definitely felt like you had a break through,” judge Carrie Ann Inaba said after watching Mischa’s upbeat samba, which earned a score of 18 out of 30. “You were dancing with joy.”

Mischa had struggled to dance with enjoyment during her time on “DWTS,” feeling defeated every time the judges critiqued her routines. But the 30-year-old actress explained to “Access Hollywood” after the show that she tossed away her insecurities and tried to enjoy her time out on the dance floor.

“It was a tough beginning and something completely out of my comfort zone,” she said. “We just decided to have fun and throw it all away … because I wanted to do so well and I wanted to take it so seriously and at a certain point you have to be enjoying yourself.”

The London-born star explained to “Good Morning America” the day after getting eliminated that she was disappointed her journey on “DWTS” had ended.

“We were getting to a place where it was finally becoming easy and fun,” she said, adding that she was “sad to go home.”

Artem shared a similar sentiment, expressing that it was a shame they were sent home after finally figuring out how to “click” on the dance floor. “It’s sad but we can’t do much about it,” he said while speaking to “Access Hollywood.”

But just because Mischa is no longer sashaying around the ballroom doesn’t mean her dancing adventure is over. In a blog post for People magazine Mischa revealed that she’ll carry her “newfound love of dance” with her for the rest of her life.

“Dancing With the Stars” airs Mondays at 8 p.m. EDT on ABC.

RELATED STORIES