‘Dancing With The Stars’ Season 35 Will Bring Back Brutal Double Elimination
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A new group of celebrities is about to hit the ballroom floor for the first time, but Dancing With the Stars is bringing a twist to its Season 35 premiere.
DWTS will kick off its 35th season with a two-night premiere on September 15 and 16. Fans will see hosts Julianne Hough and Alfonso Ribeiro return, along with the show’s three judges, Derek Hough, Carrie Ann Inaba, and Bruno Tonioli.
Two episodes in one week is something new for the competition. Typically, there’s only one episode every Tuesday, and the show will return to that schedule after the premiere.
But that isn’t the only change this season. DWTS is also adding a double elimination during the premiere. Here’s how that’s going to work:
On Tuesday night (Sept. 15), all of the male celebrities will perform their routines. By the end of the episode, one of them will be voted off.
The male celebrities competing this season are:
- Paralympian Ezra French
- Jimmy Kimmel Live star Guillermo Rodriguez
- Singer Taylor Hanson
- Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Conner Leavitt
- Savannah Bananas player Jackson Olson
- The Bachelorette alum Tyler Cameron
- Actor Harry Shum Jr.
- Influencer Connor Wood
Then, on Wednesday night (Sept. 16), the female celebrities will show off their dance moves. Just like the night before, one of them will be sent home at the end.
The female celebrities competing are:
- Actress Julia Stiles
- Reality star Sarah Jane Nader
- Summer House star Ciara Miller
- Olympian Amber Glenn
- Reality star Maura Higgins
- Actress Jenna Dewan
- Chef Giada De Laurentiis
- Actress Tatyana Ali
This hasn’t happened since 2018. The last time DWTS had a double elimination during premiere week was Season 26, when the show had its shortest season ever with an all-athletes cast.
Dancing With The Stars Pro Dancers Speak Out About Double Elimination
Because a double elimination hasn’t happened in so long, many pro dancers haven’t experienced one firsthand. So, stepping into the ballroom this time around, they’ll have to be very prepared for whatever could happen.
During an appearance on Hulu’s Get Real podcast, DWTS pro Mark Ballas admitted that the situation isn’t ideal.
“It’s not even an even playing field, right?” he said. “It’s, like, the cast is split in half. They’re, kind of, like, ‘Boys over there, girls over here; one of you is going from each group.’ So, that’s a little different.”
This new format may seem a little daunting for viewers, especially those who have been watching the show for years. Sometimes changes can be hard to get used to. However, pro dancer Witney Carson, who is the reigning Mirrorball champion after winning Season 34 with Robert Irwin, says the meaning of the show will never change.
“It’s not really news to me that we change some things out. We stay to the core of what the show is, which is competing and dancing. All of that stays the same,” she told TODAY.
Witney added that although the double elimination is “very scary,” she understands why it must be done.
“But at the same time, there’s a lot of couples and that’s just (the) competition,” she continued. “You have to vote people out, and I think people are going to have a really hard time doing that because every celebrity is so amazing.”
Dancing With the Stars Season 35 will air on Tuesday, September 15, and Wednesday, September 16, at 8 PM/7 PM Central on ABC and Disney +.
