The ballroom is back, the scores are in and the race for the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy has officially begun. Dancing with the Stars returned for its 35th season with one of its largest casts yet, bringing together celebrities from television, sports, music, social media and more.
Season 35 kicked off with a special two-night premiere Sept. 15 and 16. Alfonso Ribeiro and Julianne Hough returned as hosts, alongside judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli. This season began with 16 celebrities paired with professional dancers, tying for one of the largest casts in the show’s history.
The cast includes several familiar faces such as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air actress Tatyana Ali, The Rookie star Jenna Dewan, Hanson singer Taylor Hanson and 10 Things I Hate About You actress Julia Stiles. The ballroom also welcomed athletes, reality television personalities and social media stars, including Paralympic gold medalist Ezra Frech, Olympic figure skater Amber Glenn, Tyler Cameron and Savannah Bananas star Jackson Olson.
The premiere looked a little different this year. The male celebrities performed during the first night, while the women took the ballroom the following evening. Each celebrity performed to a No. 1 song from the year they were born. The competition wasted no time sending contestants home, with Connor Leavitt and professional partner Adele Zaikman becoming the first couple eliminated. Sarah Jane Nadar and Hailey Bills followed them out on night two.
Week two brought all of the remaining celebrities together for the first time for “Viral Hits Night on Sept. 22. The couples performed to songs that have found popularity online, while trying to improve from their first performances.
Week three brought ‘Yacht Rock Night,’ where Amber Glenn and Harry Shum Jr. emerged at the top of the leaderboard with 24 points each. The night ended with another surprising goodbye as Hanson and Stewart were eliminated, narrowing the competition to 12 couples.
Through the first three weeks of competition, Season 35 has already brought surprising eliminations, standout performances and plenty of improvement across the ballroom. As the scores continue to rise and the competition gets tougher, each performance will become even more important for the celebrities hoping to make it to the finale and take home the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy.
Dancing with the Stars airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. on ABC and Disney+, with episodes available the following day on Hulu.