Updated Sept. 1, 2026, 9:30 a.m. ET
Dancing with the Stars has confirmed its Season 35 hosts and judges ahead of the upcoming cast announcement.
Alfonso Ribeiro and Julianne Hough will return as hosts of the longtime ABC competition series. Derek Hough, Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli are also set to resume their roles on the judges’ panel.
The announcement was made during a Sept. 1 segment on Good Morning America, one day before the full cast of celebrity contestants and their professional partners is scheduled to be revealed.
“You can expect what you know and love about ‘Dancing with the Stars’ but also an energized show. We have so much momentum. The cast is incredible,” Derek Hough said during the “GMA” segment. “It’s gonna be an incredible season. I truly cannot wait.”
Dancing with the Stars Season 35 will premiere with back-to-back episodes Tuesday, Sept. 15, and Wednesday, Sept. 16.
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Who is returning to Dancing with the Stars?
Ribeiro, who won the Mirrorball Trophy with professional dancer Witney Carson in Season 19, has co-hosted Dancing with the Stars with Julianne Hough since Season 32.
Julianne Hough, who starred in Safe Haven, competed as a professional dancer during the show’s early seasons and won consecutive championships in Seasons 4 and 5. After stepping away from the competition, she returned as a judge for Seasons 19 through 24, except Season 22, before becoming the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air alum’s co-host in 2023.
Her brother, former professional dancer Derek Hough, competed on the show for nearly 10 years and won the Mirrorball Trophy six times. He became a judge in 2020, joining Inaba and Tonioli, who have served on the panel since the series debuted.
Dancing with the Stars Season 35 cast
Four celebrities and one professional pairing have been announced so far for the new season: Summer House star Ciara Miller, Love Island favorite Maura Higgins, Savannah Bananas player Jackson Olson and Jimmy Kimmel Live regular Guillermo Rodriguez.
Rodriguez will compete with Carson, the show’s reigning champion after winning Season 34 with Robert Irwin. The pair are an unofficial trio, as Carson recently revealed that she is pregnant with her third child.
Sharna Burgess is also returning as a professional dancer after a five-year break from the series. Her hiatus began the year after she won her first Mirrorball Trophy in Season 27 with celebrity partner Bobby Bones.
Dancing with the Stars Season 35 premieres Tuesday, Sept. 15, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and Disney+. New episodes will be available to stream the following day on Hulu.
