Just a few weeks ago, Dancing with the Stars premiered its 33rd season, and no one has been able to stop talking about it since. Even before the season started, social media was buzzing with predictions and excitement for which celebrities would compete for the coveted Mirrorball Trophy. The show has become so popular that vice presidential candidate Tim Walz even made a statement to fans of the show during the debate, as many were upset that the debate postponed its weekly episode. So the real question is, where did all of this come from? Dancing with the Stars has been running continuously since it premiered in 2005 and has been averagely notable in pop culture, with the anticipated spikes and dips in viewership that come along with any long-running program. This is until its recent resurgence when it became a weekly trending topic. A few factors have contributed to the recent rise in popularity, ranging from the carefully formulated cast to the increasing relevance of social media in the show’s structure.
Casting
Dancing with the Stars has always been strategic about which celebrities they pick to compete in each season, ensuring they cover as many viewer demographics as possible to maximize their audience. If you look at the cast of any season, you’ll probably start to notice some common themes. The cast normally ranges from older stars in nostalgic TV shows, to current reality TV stars, professional athletes, and 1 or 2 controversial figures that will get people talking. Over the years, the show has really refined this formula, and I think the casting choices in recent years have contributed to its rise in popularity. Dancing with the Stars has gotten very good at capitalizing on people who have recently come into a lot of fame because when everyone is talking about someone, and they get that person on the show, people have no choice but to start talking about the show. Some of the biggest examples of this recently have been social media stars Charli D’amelio and JoJo Siwa, who both have huge social media followings (whether people are happy about it or not). Their casting drew a lot of attention and got many people to tune in just to see how they would do. Both stars ended up being incredibly successful as they both made it to the finals, and D’amelio even took home the Mirrorball trophy alongside pro partner Mark Ballas.
This current season had strong casting choices across the board, but perhaps the most highly anticipated contestants were Stephen Nedoroscik and Ilona Maher, who both left the Paris 2024 Olympics with bronze medals and America’s hearts. These two were both great picks for the show because they were cast just a few months after their performances in the Olympic Games, while they were still fresh in people’s minds and fans were eager to see more of them. Maher has had a substantial TikTok following for a while, but she reached new levels of notoriety during the Olympics where she led the U.S. Women’s Rugby team to a historic bronze medal. I’d say Nedoroscik was pretty much unknown to the general public before his appearance as the pommel horse specialist for the U.S. Men’s Gymnastics Team, but he emerged as an absolute fan favorite due to both his impressive performance and quirky, endearing personality. Likable, popular personalities are crucial to the show’s success, and these two are perfect examples. Many people were already excited to tune in and vote for them, regardless of their dancing ability, before the season even started.
Another category of contestant that draws a lot of attention is the reality TV stars coming to the competition fresh off their stints on their respective shows. I’d say this most commonly comes in the form of the most recent Bachelor or Bachelorette, which are both present in this season, to capitalize on their popularity (before it inevitably fades) and increase viewership. Some fans get tired of this trope and find these contestants boring, but this season, former Bachelor Joey Graziadei and former Bachelorette Jenn Tran are changing people’s minds. Graziadei has simply shocked people with his pure talent and charismatic performances because many had not seen this side of him and were not expecting such a strong start to the competition. Tran has not had quite as strong a start, but fans have been showing strong support and are excited to see her compete for different reasons. Tran made a last-minute decision to join the cast and was only given 45 minutes after walking off the stage of her explosive Bachelorette finale to get on a plane to announce her casting. This was a whirlwind for Tran as she did not have the typical fairytale ending that most Bachelorettes walk away with. Her finale episode, instead, focused on how her now ex-fiancé had ended the engagement over the phone. While this was undoubtedly an emotional night for Tran, viewers were completely in her corner, and her quick transition to Dancing with the Stars gave fans the perfect outlet to show their love and support for her.
Social Media
In addition to the show’s incredible grasp of what makes a celebrity a good contestant, the increasing relevance of social media in the show’s structure has helped bring the show into the next generation. Because the show now focuses on so many younger stars who already understand social media, the stars have made social media a huge part of their campaign tactics since they rely on fans’ votes to advance to the next week. This competition is not solely based on each contestant’s pure dancing ability; their public perception and campaign tactics can be arguably more important because, at the end of the day, the judges don’t decide who wins. The audience does. TikTok and social media, in general, have become the main channels for contestants to connect with fans and allow them to fall in love with their partnership and journey so they continue to vote for them through the competition. With each season, we see contestants pumping out more and more content and doing everything they can to be the couple that wins America’s favor.
Even after being on for 33 seasons, Dancing with the Stars has proven it’s one of the best when it comes to continuously evolving with its audience to maintain popularity and not get lost in the shuffle or fizzle out. While they’ve had their ups and downs throughout the years, they have definitely hit a sweet spot in their current season with a great cast who knows how to engage their audience to keep them coming back week after week. With the prevalence of streaming and binge culture these days, Dancing with the Stars is one of the few programs that has kept people coming back and talking about the show on a weekly basis. If they can maintain their flexibility and ability to adapt to an ever-changing culture, we have no reason to think the show will be stopping anytime soon.