‘Dancing With the Stars’ Season 33 Scores 14 Million Fans Votes for First Elimination, Biggest Count in Show’s History

The ABC ballroom dancing show shares its total voter count for the first time

Anna Delvey and Ezra Sosa on Season 33 of "Dancing With the Stars"
Anna Delvey and Ezra Sosa on Season 33 of "Dancing With the Stars" (CREDIT: Disney/Eric McCandless)

The first elimination for “Dancing With the Stars” Season 33 saw the most fan votes the ABC ballroom dancing competition show has ever seen.

As “DWTS” geared up for its first elimination of the season during its Sept. 24 episode, the show scored over 14 million fan votes, per ABC, marking the most fan votes ever received for a single episode over the course of the show’s 30+ seasons.

The news marks the first time in series history that the network has revealed the number of fan votes an episode received. ABC did not, however, provide a breakdown of how many votes went to each celebrity participant. Viewers can vote up to 10 times per episode, and can divide their votes between their celebrities of choice.

After introducing a new group of stars ready to dive into the world of ballroom dancing alongside their pro partners in the season premiere, the celebs faced a double elimination in Episode 2’s “Oscars Night,” which saw “Beverly Hills, 90210” alum Tori Spelling and scam artist Anna Delvey get sent home. Spelling was paired with Pasha Pashkov, while Delvey’s pro partner was Ezra Sosa. Although Eric Roberts landed in the bottom three during the episode, audience votes saved the “Runaway Train” star from elimination.

While the “Dancing With the Stars” Season 33 premiere initially scored 4.97 million viewers across ABC and Disney+, the premiere episode grew to 7.32 million across a week of viewing on ABC, Disney+, Hulu and digital platforms. The premiere ultimately scored a 1.31 rating among adults 18-49, up 47% from its initial live-plus-same-day rating of 0.73.

Across its two episodes, Season 33 has averaged a 0.81 rating, according to live-plus-three-day viewing, up from last season’s average rating of 0.7. Overall, “DWTS” has become the No. 1 reality program across broadcast and cable in the 18-49 demographic, according to live-plus-same-day viewing.

“Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin” and “Zombies” star Chandler Kinney has been seen as the show’s frontrunner, with former “Bachelor” Joey Graziadei, NBA star Dwight Howard and gymnast Stephen Nedoroscik, aka “pommel horse guy,” also impressing the judges at the top of the leaderboard. Other celebrities still in the game include former “Bachelorette” Jenn Tran, model Brooks Nader, reality star Phaedra Parks, NFL alum Danny Amendola, “Family Matters” actor Reginald VelJohnson and Olympic rugby player Ilona Maher.

After going on hiatus last week for the VP debate between Tim Walz and JD Vance, “Dancing With the Stars” is back for two episodes this week on Monday, Oct. 7 and Tuesday, Oct. 8.

Deadline first reported the news.

Comments