The Season 34 premiere of Dancing with the Stars was unlike any other premiere night we’ve seen for the show. For starters, Carrie Ann Inaba wasn’t there, leaving only two judges to hand out scores for the night. But something else we noticed about the first night of performances is that there were no real flops.
Every dancer who performed —and there were 14 performances — brought everything they had in them. Watching the judges hand out low scores was tough, so that, as Derek Hough put it, they’d have somewhere to go as they got better.
Dancing with the Stars Season 34 started strong
Several standout performances left DWTS fans and judges in awe. Jordan Chiles and Ezra Sosa set the bar very high as the first dancers with their sexy Salsa to Beyonce’s Break My Soul. Whitney Leavitt from Secret Lives of Mormon Wives and her pro partner Mark Ballas left jaws on the floor with their top-notch Tango to Golden by HUNTR/X, EJAE, and K-Pop Demon Hunters.
But it wasn’t until the very end of the night that we got a performance so good that it set the DWTS live audience on fire. And we suspect DWTS producers knew this, setting the lineup this way on purpose.
After Robert Irwin and Witney Carson hit every step in a very detailed jive to Steppenwolf’s Born to Be Wild, Derek declared it the best premiere night dance ever. They didn’t get the top score, instead coming in second place with a seven from each judge, but the viewers at home disagreed wholeheartedly.
Dancing with the Stars viewers have picked their winner already
“End the season now, Robert’s the winner,” one DWTS viewer declared, adding a GIF of Anthony Mackie dancing.
Another wrote, “WAIT ROBERT IRWIN ATE DOWNNNNNN And afaik, he has zero dance experience??? He reminds me of Stephen Nedoroscik’s energy but more contained.”
“Robert Irwin’s Dancing with the Stars debut is must-see television,” another wrote and we can’t help but agree.
Another shared an excited Oprah Winfrey GIF and wrote, “Robert irwin dancing like the crocodiles lives depend on it.”
Before this season started, no one really knew what to expect, and Robert was somewhere in the middle when it came to DWTS Season 34 predictions. But after last night, it’s pretty clear that he’s a frontrunner, and anyone who wants that Len Goodman Mirror Ball Trophy is going to have to go through him to get it.
Dancing with the Stars airs on Tuesdays at 8/7c on ABC and Disney+.
