17 Stars Who Want to Be on ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Season 35
A new group of celebrities are ready to take to the Dancing With the Stars ballroom floor, from actors such as Jenna Dewan to athletes like Winter Olympics stars Madison Chock and Evan Bates.
ABC has not officially announced if the dance competition series will return for Season 35. Given the fact that Season 34 garnered high viewership and broke the show’s voting records, DWTS will likely return to the small screen, though.
Robert Irwin and Witney Carson took home Season 34’s Len Goodman Mirrorball trophy, followed by Alix Earle and Val Chmerkovskiy in second place. Following his win, Robert pitched for his mother, Terri Irwin, to compete on DWTS. “She is firmly like, ‘Nope, I’m not doing it. That’s not for me,’” he told The Hollywood Reporter in December. “And I’m like, ‘Well, I’m gonna wear you down,’ so let’s wear her down and get her on there, because I think she would be great.”
While Terri may not be interested, there are already some celebrities who have said they’re very down to appear on the show. Scroll down to see who’s pitching themselves for Season 35, from reality stars to Hollywood actors to influencers and more!
Jenna Dewan
The actress is no stranger to the world of dance, but she admitted that DWTS would be fun, new challenge.
“The thing with me is it’s like, I never say never,” Dewan said of possibly joining DWTS on the March 9 episode of Good Morning America. “And I, personally, because I love dance so much and I miss it so much, I just already know myself, and it would be one of those really hard things to say no to.”
Dewan noted that she has “never ballroom danced” before, so competing on the show would be “hard” for her. “I have so much respect for everyone on that show,” she gushed.
Madison Chock & Evan Bates
The ice dancing duo took home gold and silver metals at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. Although they are partners on and off the ice, they are interested in competing against each other on DWTS.
“I think we should trade our skates for some ballroom shoes. That might be fun,” Chock shared on the March 11 episode of Live With Kelly and Mark. “I would love to do Dancing With the Stars. I love that show. I’ve been watching it since it first started.”
Host Kelly Ripa thinks either member of the duo would be a frontrunner in the competition, as she declared, “One of you will win!”
Maura Higgins
While the TV personality may not have won Season 4 of Peacock’s The Traitors, Higgins is setting her sights on taking home the DWTS mirrorball trophy.
“Maybe [I’d do] Dancing With the Stars,” she told The Hollywood Reporter in March about her next career steps. “It’s something that’d be a challenge for me. I’ve never danced. I’d done a bit of Irish dancing when I was younger. It’d be a huge challenge, but I know I’d throw myself into it and all the looks and glitter.”
Amber Glenn
After taking home a gold medal at the 2026 Winter Olympics, the figure skater revealed she’s setting her sights on taking home the mirrorball trophy. While chatting with DWTS Season 26 winner Adam Rippon in a February 21 social media video, Glenn revealed that the ABC competition series is on her “post-Olympics bucket list.”
“Dancing With the Stars for sure. I just love everything about it, [like] the costuming, the set design,” she told Rippon. “I can’t wait to see and inquire about that.”
Flavor Flav
After making a memorable appearance as a guest judge during Season 34, Flavor Flav revealed he has been approached about joining DWTS as a contestant.
“They want me to,” the rapper told People in an interview published on February 3. “They want me to come back and dance. I don’t know. I might do it if I think I could do it.”
As for whether he thinks he has what it takes to succeed in the ballroom? “No, no, I don’t,” he quipped.
Rob Gronkowski
During a January appearance on Today, the former NFL star revealed that he’s always had an interest in joining the DWTS family.
“Dancing With the Stars has always been on the plate. There’s not doubt about that,” Gronkowski shared. “I actually hosted [Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve] this year with Julianne Hough. Yes, I did, and she just brought it up continuously. ‘When are you coming on with Dancing With the Stars?’”
However, there’s one major thing holding Gronkowski back from hitting the ballroom floor. “It’s really tough because it’s during football season, it really is, but it’s always gonna be in my back pocket,” the Fox NFL Sunday cohost explained. “When I feel like the time is right, and then, if I feel like it’s appropriate, then I would do it.”
Brittany Cartwright
While chatting with DWTS Season 32 alum Harry Jowsey on a January episode of his Boyfriend Material podcast, Cartwright revealed whether she has any interest in competing on the ABC series.
“I think I would. I think it would be fun because I do have, like, a cheerleading background,” the Vanderpump Rules alum shared. “So, hopefully I would be able to, like, pick it up, you know,? But I don’t know. I think that would be fun.”
Ginnifer Goodwin
“I think you’d be great with Val [Chmerkovskiy]. We’d put you on there. You would be jamming. He would get you in hold,” DWTS cohost Alfonso Ribeiro told Goodwin in a December 2025 interview with On the Red Carpet.
The Zootopia 2 actress said she would be “honored” to join the show, under one condition. “Could I do it in sneakers, though, this time?” she asked, referring to how she sported heels for ABC’s 40th Anniversary Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade special.
Simu Liu
“I think about it, like, at least once a week. I don’t follow them on Instagram, but I love dance, and I love watching people dance, and I love dancing,” the Marvel actor told Entertainment Tonight in November 2025. “I feel like I’ve weirdly kept up with this season and watching Dylan Efron and watching Robert Irwin and all that. Trust me, I think about it regularly. So, I mean, I don’t know, if at some point in the future I can block out that amount of time, I would be down.”
Taylor Frankie Paul
A few months before her costars Jen Affleck and Whitney Leavitt began their DWTS Season 34 journeys, the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star expressed her interest in joining the show via TikTok.
“When DWTS asked any dance experience? …umm no but I am the creator of the Baja blast🤷🏻♀️,” she captioned a July 2025 clip of herself busting a move. “I’ll be here if you need ppl next season.”
Now that she’s starring as the lead of The Bachelorette, a DWTS casting certainly seems like it could be in the cards.
Bart Johnson
The actor has previously expressed interest in joining the show. He has a connection to the DWTS cast, as both he and pro Britt Stewart appeared in all three High School Musical films. Johnson famously starred as Troy Bolton’s (Zac Efron) father, while Stewart was a backup dancer.
“Do you know how many times people have said, ‘Coach, you’ve got to get on Dancing With the Stars and you’ve got to dance with Britt,’” Johnson said to Stewart on a November 2025 episode of the Get Your Head in the Game podcast. “I’m like, ‘I’m in. Sign me up. Let’s go!’”
The pair’s podcast interview ignited new fan interest in Johnson joining DWTS. “Would BE OBSESSED AND LIVE TO SEE THIS PAIRING🙌,” one user commented underneath an Instagram clip from the podcast. “Yes!!! Would love to see y’all paired together on DWTS!! 🤞🏼,” another person added.
Jake Shane
The social media influencer and comedian said he’d be open to joining DWTS after watching his pal Earle’s journey on the show. “Time will tell,” he told People in December 2025. “They haven’t made the offer yet, so I can’t even say yes or no.”
As for how the podcast host thinks he would do on the dance floor? “I think it would be too funny,” Shane joked. “I think it would be a joke. I don’t think I’d be able to do it. I think I will be laughing, is what I think would happen.”
Jackson Olson
The Savannah Bananas baseball player is looking to take his dancing skills from the baseball field to the ballroom floor. “‘Jackson would you go on Dancing With The Stars next season?’” he wrote in a December 2025 TikTok post. “‘No I wouldn’t, it’s just not my style,’” he added before showing a montage of clips of himself dancing with his teammates and friends and family.
In the post’s caption, he wrote, “Long story short… yes, yes I would :).”
Gia Giudice
Following her Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test Season 4 win, Giudice told TV Insider that she would “love” for DWTS to be her next reality show. “Shawn [Johnson] really wants [her husband] Andrew [East] to do it. So, if you guys are hearing this, if I could be on a season with Andrew, I would really love that,” the reality star shared.
Nia Sioux
After being mentioned in a TikTok user’s DWTS Season 35 cast predictions video, the Dance Moms alum hopped in the post’s comments to confirm whether she’s interested in doing the show. “MY DREAM,” she wrote.
The TikTok user suggested that Sioux be partnered with Brandon Armstrong. The pro dancer replied to Sioux’s comment, writing, “So…. What’s up?👀🤝.”
Nic Vansteenberghe
After rising to fame with Olandria Carthen on Season 7 of Love Island USA, Vansteenberghe is setting his sights on joining the DWTS family. “I’m down for anything but a dating show,” he said in an interview with Glamour in December 2025. “I’m going to start training soon. I’m manifesting.”
Vansteenberghe told the outlet that his dance progression “would be insane,” adding, “I would win most improved. I just want to dance.”
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