‘Dancing With the Stars’ 2024: Cast, Judges and Season 33 News

Note: This article reflects real Season 33 information through the November 26, 2024 finale and is formatted for direct web publishing.

If television had a glitter budget committee, Dancing With the Stars 2024 probably blew past it by week two and asked for more sequins. Season 33 of DWTS arrived with exactly the kind of chaos fans secretly order like dessert: Olympians, Bachelor Nation royalty, sitcom legends, a few headline-making casting choices, strong judges’ banter, and a finale that made the ballroom feel like a confetti factory under emotional stress.

But beyond the spray tans, dramatic lifts, and judges saying “you attacked that choreography” like they were reviewing medieval warfare, Dancing With the Stars Season 33 turned into one of the show’s strongest modern runs. The cast was varied, the chemistry was real, the competition tightened week after week, and the season closed with a winner who felt both popular and earned. For longtime viewers, it had nostalgia. For new fans, it had internet energy. For everyone else, it had enough rhinestones to be seen from low orbit.

Here is a full look at the Dancing With the Stars 2024 cast, the judges, the biggest Season 33 developments, and why this edition of the long-running ballroom competition hit differently.

What Happened in ‘Dancing With the Stars’ 2024?

Dancing With the Stars 2024 was the show’s Season 33, and it premiered on September 17, 2024. The series aired live on ABC and streamed simultaneously on Disney+, with episodes available the next day on Hulu. That distribution mattered because it let the show keep one foot in traditional TV and the other in streaming, which is a very elegant split for a series built on fancy footwork.

The 2024 season kept the hosting team that worked so well the year before: Alfonso Ribeiro and Julianne Hough. Their dynamic felt lighter and more settled, which helped the live show move smoothly even when the scoreboard got tense and somebody’s paso doble face looked like they were trying to frighten a mortgage broker.

The judges’ panel also stayed the same, with Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough, and Bruno Tonioli returning. That continuity gave Season 33 a familiar rhythm. Carrie Ann remained the detail cop, Derek balanced technique with encouragement, and Bruno did what Bruno does best: react as though each routine had personally rearranged the cosmos.

‘Dancing With the Stars’ 2024 Judges and Hosts

Hosts

Alfonso Ribeiro returned as co-host, bringing veteran warmth and contestant empathy to the ballroom. Since he is also a former Mirrorball champion, he understands the pressure behind the smiles. Julianne Hough returned as co-host as well, and her deep connection to the franchise gave the show polish and credibility. She knows the ballroom from nearly every angle possible: pro dancer, judge, and now host.

Judges

The main judging panel for DWTS Season 33 featured:

• Carrie Ann Inaba
• Derek Hough
• Bruno Tonioli

That trio remained central to the season’s success. They knew when to reward risk, when to call out sloppy footwork, and when to lean into the emotional storytelling that keeps Dancing With the Stars from becoming just a weekly shoe emergency.

Season 33 also mixed in some guest judges for special theme nights. Rosie Perez appeared on Soul Train Night, Gene Simmons appeared on Hair Metal Night, and Mark Ballas returned as a guest judge for Dedication Night. Those appearances added variety, though not every guest-judge moment landed with universal applause. Let us just say Hair Metal Night generated conversation, and not all of it was about the choreography.

‘Dancing With the Stars’ 2024 Cast: Full Season 33 Celebrity Lineup

The Dancing With the Stars 2024 cast mixed athletes, actors, reality stars, and pop-culture personalities in a way that made the season feel broad, current, and gloriously unpredictable. The full celebrity cast and pro pairings included:

• Danny Amendola with Witney Carson
• Anna Delvey with Ezra Sosa
• Joey Graziadei with Jenna Johnson
• Dwight Howard with Daniella Karagach
• Chandler Kinney with Brandon Armstrong
• Ilona Maher with Alan Bersten
• Brooks Nader with Gleb Savchenko
• Stephen Nedoroscik with Rylee Arnold
• Phaedra Parks with Val Chmerkovskiy
• Eric Roberts with Britt Stewart
• Tori Spelling with Pasha Pashkov
• Jenn Tran with Sasha Farber
• Reginald VelJohnson with Emma Slater

This cast worked because it was not built around one demographic. You had Olympic momentum from Stephen Nedoroscik and Ilona Maher, nostalgic TV appeal from Tori Spelling and Reginald VelJohnson, reality-TV familiarity from Joey Graziadei, Jenn Tran, and Phaedra Parks, plus enough personality across the board to keep rehearsal packages entertaining instead of feeling like motivational wallpaper.

Biggest Season 33 Storylines and News

1. Stephen Nedoroscik arrived first and brought Olympic buzz

Before the full cast was announced, Stephen Nedoroscik became the first confirmed celebrity for Season 33. That was a smart early reveal. He came into the show fresh off a high-profile 2024 Olympic moment, already carrying internet goodwill and a built-in underdog charm. His mix of athletic precision, nervous sincerity, and “I am somehow both elite and adorable” energy made him an instant fit for DWTS 2024.

2. Jenn Tran joined the season after a major Bachelor franchise moment

Jenn Tran entered the lineup with plenty of attention from Bachelor Nation, and her casting added an extra layer of current pop-culture relevance. The franchise has long fed the ballroom a reliable pipeline of contestants, but Jenn’s presence felt especially timely. Season 33 clearly knew how to tap into audiences who already live online and react in real time.

3. Joey Graziadei became the season’s steady-climbing standout

At first, Joey Graziadei looked like a strong contender. By the middle of the season, he looked like a legitimate threat. By the finale, he looked like a guy who had figured out how to pair clean technique, likability, and consistency without becoming bland. That is harder than it sounds. Plenty of contestants can improve. Fewer can improve while still seeming relaxed, natural, and worth voting for every week.

4. Chandler Kinney emerged as an early frontrunner

If you were looking for pure technical spark, Chandler Kinney delivered it early. Her performances with Brandon Armstrong often felt sharp, polished, and competitive in the best way. She gave the season an edge because viewers could see real performance strength from the jump. Every competition season needs someone who raises the standard; Chandler handled that assignment nicely.

5. Ilona Maher became one of the season’s most beloved personalities

Ilona Maher brought humor, charisma, physical power, and emotional openness to the ballroom. She felt like the kind of contestant who expands the show’s image just by being there. Her run with Alan Bersten helped make Season 33 feel more modern, more body-positive, and more connected to the audience beyond old-school reality-TV habits.

6. Anna Delvey casting became the season’s loudest controversy

Not every headline was celebratory. The decision to cast Anna Delvey generated immediate backlash and plenty of debate. That controversy followed the show into its opening stretch and gave Season 33 an awkward media cloud early on. In classic DWTS fashion, though, the ballroom eventually did what the ballroom usually does: it kept dancing until the controversy was no longer the main event.

7. The 500th episode gave the season a major milestone moment

One of the biggest Season 33 news items was the show’s 500th episode, which aired in November 2024. That milestone gave the season a built-in nostalgia boost. The episode leaned into iconic routines from the show’s history and reminded viewers that Dancing With the Stars has stayed alive for nearly two decades by constantly remixing old-school comfort with new-school casting.

Who Won ‘Dancing With the Stars’ 2024?

The winner of Dancing With the Stars Season 33 was Joey Graziadei with pro partner Jenna Johnson. They won the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy in the finale on November 26, 2024.

The final standings were:

1. Joey Graziadei and Jenna Johnson Winners
2. Ilona Maher and Alan Bersten Runners-up
3. Chandler Kinney and Brandon Armstrong Third place
4. Stephen Nedoroscik and Rylee Arnold Fourth place
5. Danny Amendola and Witney Carson Fifth place

That top five lineup made the finale feel unusually balanced. There was no obvious filler. Joey and Jenna won because they combined audience appeal with real week-to-week development. Ilona and Alan had momentum and heart. Chandler and Brandon brought technical firepower. Stephen and Rylee were deeply watchable. Danny and Witney peaked at the right time. In other words, the finale felt less like a formality and more like an actual competition, which reality TV should probably remember is the entire point.

Why Season 33 Worked So Well

The best thing about Dancing With the Stars 2024 was that it felt lively without feeling fake. The producers had a cast that made sense for 2024, but the show still respected its own traditions. It did not try to become something else. It simply tightened the formula.

Season 33 also benefited from strong cross-generational appeal. Older viewers had familiar TV faces. Younger viewers had Olympians, Bachelor alumni, and social-media-relevant contestants. Streaming helped broaden access, while the live format preserved the urgency. You could feel the audience reacting in real time, which is part of why DWTS still works when so many competition shows end up feeling like they were assembled in a conference room by people who fear joy.

The numbers backed that up too. The season premiere posted an uptick from the prior season, and the finale drew one of the show’s biggest audiences in years. That kind of performance does not happen just because a disco ball exists. It happens because the cast clicked, the competition felt real, and viewers had reasons to show up live instead of pretending they would “catch up later” and then never doing it.

The Season 33 Experience: What Watching ‘DWTS’ 2024 Felt Like

One of the most interesting things about Dancing With the Stars 2024 was not just who danced, but how the season felt as a viewing experience. Season 33 had that rare reality-TV balance where the show seemed both familiar and newly energized. It still had the bones of classic DWTS: themed nights, judge reactions, emotional rehearsal packages, crowd-pleasing freestyles, and enough glitter to alarm a vacuum cleaner. But it also felt distinctly 2024 in the way audiences talked about it, clipped it, memed it, and debated it across platforms in real time.

For many viewers, the season offered a comforting weekly ritual. Tuesday nights became a little event again, the kind where fans were not just watching routines but live-commenting on scoring, wardrobe, chemistry, and whether Bruno had discovered a new volume setting. In a streaming era where entertainment often disappears into private binge sessions, DWTS Season 33 felt communal. That matters. A live competition series works best when audiences feel like they are attending a giant national group chat with better lighting.

The emotional experience of the season was also stronger than expected. Contestants like Ilona Maher, Stephen Nedoroscik, Chandler Kinney, and Joey Graziadei gave viewers different entry points. Some people watched for athletic transformation. Some watched for performance polish. Some showed up for personality. Some came for Bachelor Nation loyalty and stayed because the dancing was actually good. That mix made the season feel inclusive rather than narrow. It was not one-note fandom; it was a buffet.

Then there was the nostalgia factor. The 500th episode reminded longtime viewers why the franchise still has emotional weight. It was not simply a milestone number. It was a reminder that Dancing With the Stars has been part of people’s entertainment routines for years, sometimes decades. Watching Season 33 could feel like reconnecting with a comfort show that somehow learned a few new tricks without abandoning its original personality.

There was also a messier, more human side to the viewing experience, and frankly, that helped. Not every casting decision was embraced. Not every guest-judge moment sparkled. Not every score felt fair. But that friction is part of what makes the show watchable. A perfectly tidy season would be efficient, not memorable. Season 33 had enough debate, surprise, and occasional “what exactly are we doing here?” energy to stay culturally alive.

By the time the finale arrived, the season felt earned. Fans had watched contestants grow, stall, recover, and push through. The finalists each represented a different version of what success on DWTS 2024 could look like: technical excellence, emotional openness, audience connection, athletic adaptability, and late-season momentum. That made the ending satisfying even for viewers whose personal favorite did not win. The season gave people enough story, enough skill, and enough sparkle to justify the investment. In TV terms, that is a triumph. In ballroom terms, that is a ten paddle with jazz hands.

Final Take on ‘Dancing With the Stars’ 2024

‘Dancing With the Stars’ 2024: Cast, Judges and Season 33 News turned out to be more than a routine seasonal refresh. It was a reminder that the series still knows how to cast smartly, evolve carefully, and deliver a finale that feels like an event rather than an obligation. With returning judges, a stable host duo, a highly watchable cast, a 500th-episode milestone, and a deserving Mirrorball-winning pair in Joey Graziadei and Jenna Johnson, Season 33 gave the franchise one of its healthiest recent chapters.

In other words, the ballroom still has life in it. Plenty of life. Possibly too much life. Somebody should check whether the glitter machine ever got turned off.

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