Dancing with the Stars is back and Season 35 might be its most nostalgic yet. The full cast was announced on Good Morning America on September 2, with a two-night premiere set for Tuesday September 15 and Wednesday September 16 on ABC and Disney+.
The season delivers a genuine Fresh Prince of Bel-Air reunion, with co-host Alfonso Ribeiro sharing the ballroom with his former castmate Tatyana Ali, who played Ashley Banks across six seasons. Ribeiro admitted he found out through social media, joking that the show keeps him in the dark until the last minute.
The millennial dance movie contingent is equally strong. Jenna Dewan, who launched her career as a backup dancer for Janet Jackson before starring in the original Step Up, joins the competition paired with Val Chmerkovskiy. This year marks the 20th anniversary of Step Up, and Dewan confirmed fans can expect some nods to the film. Julia Stiles, best known for Save the Last Dance and 10 Things I Hate About You, joins paired with Ezra Sosa, while Harry Shum Jr., who spent six seasons dancing as Mike Chang on Glee and appeared in multiple Step Up films, is paired with Jenna Johnson.
Taylor Hanson of the band Hanson brings the MMMBop era to the ballroom with partner Britt Stewart, while Tyler Cameron of Bachelor Nation pairs with returning pro Sharna Burgess, who is back for her first season since Season 30 in 2021.
On the athletics side, Paralympian gold medalist Ezra Frech competes with Daniella Karagach, making him the fourth celebrity with a prosthetic limb to compete on the show, and Olympic figure skater Amber Glenn, the first openly LGBTQ+ US women’s figure skating champion, dances with Pasha Pashkov.
Rounding out the cast are celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis with Alan Bersten, comedian and podcaster Connor Wood with Rylee Arnold, Jimmy Kimmel Live sidekick Guillermo Rodriguez with reigning champion Witney Carson, who is competing in her second trimester making her the first pro to do so, Summer House star Ciara Miller with Brandon Armstrong, Love Island UK and Traitors star Maura Higgins with Mark Ballas, Savannah Bananas baseball player Jackson Olson with Emma Slater, Conner Leavitt with Adele Zaikman and Sarah Jane Nader with Hailey Bills, who will form the show’s third same-sex pairing.
The season follows record-breaking viewership for Season 34, whose finale drew 9.24 million total viewers, the show’s largest audience in nine years. Judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli and Derek Hough return alongside co-hosts Ribeiro and Julianne Hough. Episodes will stream the following day on Hulu.