Dancing with the Stars returned on Tuesday night for the live Season 34 premiere on ABC and Disney+, as a new cast of celebrities and their professional partners entered the ballroom for the first week of the competition, dancing to their personal anthems.
Robert Irwin, Whitney Leavitt Lead DWTS Season 34 Premiere
Tuesday’s DWTS premiere only featured two judges, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli, as Carrie Ann Inaba was under the weather and had to sit the episode out. That meant that the couples’ combined scores were out of 20 instead of the usual 30.
There was a tie at the top of the leaderboard during the Season 34 premiere, between Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Whitney Leavitt and wildlife conservationist Robert Irwin. Whitney danced a tango with her partner, returning pro Mark Ballas, set to “Golden” by HUNTR/X from the hit Netflix movie KPop Demon Hunters.
Bruno Tonioli called the performance “very high quality,” while Derek Hough said that Carrie Ann Inaba would love it if she were there. There was a bit of confusion when it came to scoring, as both judges held up 7 paddles, but it turns out that Tonioli keyed in a score of 8. That meant that Whitney and Mark’s official score was 15 out of 20.
The night closed with a performance by Robert Irwin and his partner Witney Carson. Robert’s older sister Bindi won Season 21 of the show with Derek Hough, so he had some big shoes to fill. As Hough said after his jive to “Born to Be Wild” by Steppenwolf, he “owned those shoes.”
Hough went as far as to call it “the best first dance I have ever seen on this show,” which is incredible considering Robert has no dance experience. Robert and Witney earned a combined score of 15 out of 20. Depending on what you think of Whitney’s scoring situation, you could argue that Robert technically had the top dance of the night.
Contestants Share Empowering Stories During the Premiere
For several contestants on this week’s show, entering the DWTS ballroom was an especially empowering experience. That includes Hilaria Baldwin, who was right behind Whitney and Robert on the leaderboard. She shared that she used to be a dancer before breaking her hip.
During the premiere, Hilaria danced a cha-cha to “Let’s Get Loud” by Jennifer Lopez with her partner Gleb Savchenko. The judges were impressed, giving Hilaria a combined score of 14 out of 20 and putting her in third place for the night.
The Parent Trap actress Elaine Hendrix had a similar story. She started her career as a professional dancer before being hit by a car. Her first dance with partner Alan Bersten was a cha-cha to “Woman” by Kesha, featuring some cute references to her most iconic role. Hough called the performance “Broadway quality.” She earned a score of 12 out of 20.
Boy Meets World star Danielle Fishel also had an inspiring story, as she is a cancer survivor. She chose to dance the tango to “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)” by Kelly Clarkson alongside her partner Pasha Pashkov. Tonioli said she has a “wonderful sense of movement.” She also earned a combined score of 12 out of 20.
Then there’s Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Jen Affleck, who amazingly just welcomed a baby eight weeks ago. She and her partner, new pro Jan Ravnik, danced a salsa to “Nuevayol” by Bad Bunny. Hough called it a “great first dance.” The couple earned a 12 out of 20.
Who Else Impressed the Judges This Week?
Two more impressive dances from the DWTS season premiere came from TikTok star Alix Earle and Fifth Harmony member Lauren Jauregui, who both earned 13 out of 20. Alix performed a cha-cha to “Circus” by Britney Spears with her partner Val Chmerkovskiy, while Lauren and her partner Brandon Armstrong danced a tango to “Yes, And?” by Ariana Grande.
In the middle of the leaderboard on Tuesday night, with matching scores of 10 out of 20, were Jordan Chiles and Ezra Sosa; Dylan Efron and Daniella Karagach; Baron Davis and Britt Stewart; and Scott Hoying and Rylee Arnold.
At the bottom of the leaderboard at the end of the premiere were Corey Feldman and Jenna Johnson, who danced a tango to “It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me” by Billy Joel; and Andy Richter and Emma Slater, who danced a cha-cha to “Hold On, I’m Comin'” by Sam & Dave. Both couples earned a 9 out of 10.
Voting was open during the show. There was no elimination this week, so this week’s scores and votes will be combined with next week’s to determine who goes home in a double elimination. Next week’s theme is One Hit Wonders, as the celebrities return to the ballroom for their second dance of the season.
Words by:
Jill O'Rourke Jill O’Rourke is a contributor at Talent Recap, writing news stories and recaps for shows like ‘AGT,’ ‘The Voice,’ and ‘American Idol.’ She graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in English and Film Studies, and has been writing about pop culture since 2012, with previous bylines at Crushable and A Plus. Jill spends her free time binge-watching sitcoms and daydreaming about life as a hobbit
