The best time of year is here – it’s Dancing With The Stars season!
Season 33 of Dancing With The Stars premiered September 17, 2024 on ABC and Disney Plus. This season features 13 celebrities who will be competing for the coveted Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy, named after the late DWTS judge Len Goodman.
Actor and DWTS season 19 winner Alfonso Riberio, and DWTS pro-dancer vet Julianne Hough, return as co-hosts this season. Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, and Derek Hough are also back in the ballroom as judges.
This season features a variety of stars including two of Team USA’s Olympians Stephen Nedoroscik and Ilona Maher, actresses Tori Spelling and Chandler Kinney, and Bachelor and Bachelorette stars Joey Graziadei and Jenn Tran, among others.
The most watched season premiere in years opened with this season’s pros dancing an opening number to “I’m Alive” by Celine Dion. There was no elimination for the opening night, but that didn’t stop this season’s couples from giving their first dances their all!
Bachelor star Joey Graziadei and his partner Jenna Johnson had the first dance of the night. The couple danced a Cha-Cha to “Dancin’ in the Country” by Tyler Hubbard. The dance was the perfect way to open the new season, and earned the couple a 21 out of 30. Graziadei’s score earned him the highest week one score for a male Bachelor contestant in DWTS history. Additionally, no Bachelor has ever made it to the DWTS finals, so it will be exciting to see how far Graziadei goes!
Next on the dancefloor was model Brooks Nader and her partner Gleb Savchenko. It’s clear that Nader and Savchenko are playing into the showmance narrative this season. Nader shared in her pre-recorded package that she finds Savchenko attractive and that she’s newly single. The couple brought this “spark” to their tango that earned them 18 points.
Rugby player and Bronze Olympic medalist Ilona Maher was next with her partner Alan Bersten. Maher shared in her pre-recorded package, “I’m just a very big, muscular woman, but I also feel so beautiful and feminine… I grew up not very comfortable, so I want to now make it easier for young girls to love their body.” Maher, who is the first rugby player to be on the show, danced a Cha-Cha and earned herself 18 points.
Actor Reginald VelJohnson was next on the dance floor with his partner Emma Slater. VelJohnson is the oldest celebrity this season, and has already become a fan favorite due to his sweet and friendly personality. Sadly, his Salsa wasn’t the best routine of the night, and could’ve used more movement from VelJohnson. The routine earned the actor 16 points.
NFL player Danny Amendola danced next with his partner, returning DWTS pro and champion, Witney Carson. The couple danced a Tango to “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” and earned 20 out of 30 possible points.
Beverly Hills, 90210 actress Tori Spelling was next on the dance floor with her partner Pasha Pashkov. In her pre-recorded package, Spelling revealed that she declined joining the dance competition for all 32 of the previous seasons. Due to recent personal events, she knew it was finally her time to hit the dance floor. The couple danced a Foxtrot to “Trustfall” by P!nk, and earned 17 points.
Bachelorette star Jenn Tran was up next with her partner Sasha Farber. Tran and Farber’s partnership had a much different start than the rest of the couples this season. 45 minutes after an emotional Bachelorette finale, Tran exited the After the Final Rose stage to find out she’d be on the newest season of DWTS, and she had to be at Good Morning America the next morning for the cast reveal. Tran and Farber met for the first time only minutes before they had to board their flight to New York. Despite the couple having less time to get to know each other compared to the other couples, Tran and Farber’s Cha-Cha to “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus earned 19 points.
Actress Chandler Kinney found herself and partner Brandon Armstrong atop the leaderboard at the end of the night for their Tango to “HOT TO GO!” by Chappell Roan. Kinney enters this competition with some prior dance experience, thanks to her time on Disney Channel. The couple’s tango earned them a score of 23 points, which included two “8s.” The last Disney Channel star, (and DWTS season 25 winner), to score an 8 on a week one tango was Jordan Fisher. We’re super excited to see how Kinney does this season!
NBA player Dwight Howard was next with his partner Daniella Karagach. Howard being 6’ 10” while Karagach is 5’ 3” may have seemed like it would be a challenge, but this isn’t the first time Karagach has been paired with a much taller NBA player. Karagach danced with Iman Shumpert in season 30, and won! The couple’s height difference ultimately didn’t impact their Salsa, and earned them 22 points.
Actor Eric Roberts danced next with his partner Britt Stewart. In his pre-recorded package, Roberts revealed that due to a previous car accident, one side of his body moves slightly delayed from the rest of his body. This challenge unfortunately did bring some missteps to his Cha-Cha, and earned him the lowest score of the night – a 15 out of 30. Despite this set back, Roberts still gave it his all.
Real Housewives of Atlanta star Phaedra Parks and her partner Val Chmerkovskiy were next on the floor with their Cha-Cha to “I’m Every Woman” by Whitney Houston. No Housewife star has ever made it to the finals, and Parks shared in her pre-recorded package that this drives her to win even more. The dance earned the couple 19 points.
Excitement soured through the ballroom when the next star, male Olympic gymnast and Bronze medalist, Stephen Nedoroscik danced a Jive with his partner Rylee Arnold. Nedoroscik was the first star to be announced back in August, after a whirlwind of a summer at the 2024 Paris Olympics. At the Olympic games, Nedoroscik won over the people’s hearts with his pommel horse routine – a routine which helped Team USA’s male gymnastics team win a Bronze medal. Nedoroscik is the first male gymnast to compete on the show, and he shared he doesn’t take this honor lightly. Nedoroscik and Arnold’s Jive earned them 21 points.
The final contestant to dance on opening night comes with a bit of controversy. Anna Delvey danced a Cha-Cha with this season’s newest pro, Ezra Sosa. Delvey is known for being a convicted con artist, and DWTS fans were quick to share their disappointment on social media about her casting on the show. After the couple’s Cha-Cha, which earned 18 points, judge Carrie Ann Inaba made a statement that viewers should give Delvey a chance.
Night one didn’t feature an elimination, but it was announced at the end of the premiere that the next episode would include a double elimination instead.
Episode two was Oscars Night, and premiered on Tuesday, September 24.