‘Dancing With the Stars’ Breaks Long-Standing Tradition After 33 Seasons

After 33 seasons of Dancing With the Stars, the ABC competition show is breaking a long-standing tradition by releasing viewer vote totals. 

The network told Deadline on Monday, Oct. 7, that fan engagement with the show is the strongest it’s ever been, reporting more than 14 million fan votes being cast on the Sept. 24 episode, which ended with Anna Delvey and pro partner Ezra Sosa getting eliminated alongside Tori Spelling and her partner, Pasha Pashkov. Viewers can vote up to 10 times for each couple they want to stay in the competition. 

“The record number of votes that week suggests to me that a lot of our audience are very passionate about a lot of our stars this year, and the increased ratings year or year would suggest that it is the case,” Dancing With the Stars executive producer Conrad Green told Deadline.

The Dancing With the Stars Season 33 premiere on Sept. 17, averaged 7.32 million total viewers after seven days of viewing on ABC and streamers like Disney+ and Hulu. Two episodes into the season, Dancing With the Stars averaged a .81 rating in adults 18-49 in viewings within the first three days after the original air time.  

“At core, as always, the cast is what defines the season,” Green continued. “This group of stars are really likable, talented and love being on the show – and that passion for what they’re doing really comes through on live TV. There’s real dance talent across the cast and lot of unique stories as well as so much potential in the couples to grow as performers.”

In addition to Delvey and Spelling, Season 33 of Dancing With the Stars features Olympians Stephen Nedoroscik and Ilona Maher, former Bachelorette Jenn Tran and former Bachelor Joey Graziadei, Real Housewives of Atlanta star Phaedra Parks, Family Matters alum Reginald VelJohnson, and former pro athletes Danny Amendola and Dwight Howard.

“Also, Dancing With the Stars is a really positive show at a time when the world is feeling pretty bleak, so there’s a certain escapism and sense of community that comes with watching which helps remind us of what we have in common as Americans,” Green theorized. “We’ve also been on air long enough now that a new generation of viewers are watching with their kids and the popularity of the show on social apps like TikTok has exploded and introduced new viewers.”

Dancing With the Stars airs a second episode this week on Tuesday, Oct. 8, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and Disney+. Episodes are available to stream on Hulu and Disney+ the next day.