DWTS season premiere: Robert Irwin and Whitney Leavitt take early leads as host announces elimination twist

Here is this year’s cast in full, plus their pro dancer pairings:

• Jordan Chiles (with Ezra Sosa) — Gold medal-winning Olympic gymnast
• Lauren Jauregui (with Brandon Armstrong) — Fifth Harmony singer
• Dylan Efron (with Daniella Karagach) — Reality TV personality and brother of actor Zac Efron
• Corey Feldman (with Jenna Johnson) — Eighties film star of Gremlins, The Goonies and Stand by Me
• Hilaria Baldwin (with Gleb Savchenko) — Yoga instructor, podcaster and wife of actor Alec Baldwin
• Andy Richter (with Emma Slater) — Comedian and former sidekick of Conan O’Brien
• Danielle Fishel (with Pasha Pashkov) — Star of Boy Meets World
• Elaine Hendrix (with Alan Bersten) — Actor known for her role as Meredith Blake in the 1998 remake of The Parent Trap
• Scott Hoying (Rylee Arnold) — Pentatonix singer
• Robert Irwin (Witney Carson) — Wildlife conservationist and son of the late Steve Irwin
• Alix Earle (with Val Chmerkovskiy) — Social media influencer and host of the Hot Mess podcast
• Jen Affleck (with Jan Ravnik) — Star of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives
• Whitney Leavitt (with Mark Ballas) — Also from The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives
• Baron Davis (with Britt Stewart) — Two-time NBA All-Star

Inaba is “under the weather” and won’t be present during the first week of the competition series.

She shared the news hours before the show’s premiere via Instagram, wishing everyone luck.

Pro dancer Mark Ballas is returning from retirement to compete this season.

He departed the show in 2023 after winning his third Mirrorball trophy with Charli D’Amelio.

Ballas competed in 20 seasons prior to his exit.

However, the excitement is bittersweet. Karagach knows the weeks ahead will bring long days and late nights away from her young daughter.

Married to fellow DWTS pro Pasha Pashkov for more than a decade, the couple welcomed their daughter, Nikita, in May 2023.

“There’s definitely a lot of mom guilt and that will never go away, especially now that Kiki’s talking, and she says, ‘Mama, don’t go to work,’” Karagach says.

Affleck, of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, and her pro partner Jan Ravnik will perform a Salsa to “NUEVAYoL” by Bad Bunny.

Ravnik joins Dancing With the Stars after touring with Taylor Swift.

Baldwin, author and wife of actor Alec Baldwin, and her pro dance partner Savchenko will perform a Cha Cha to “Let’s Get Loud” by Jennifer Lopez.

The 29-year-old model, who is the daughter of Alec Baldwin and his ex-wife Kim Basinger, shared a lengthy statement on Instagram Thursday to support Hilaria’s appearance on the ABC competition show.

“I wanted to take a second to talk about my step mom @hilariabaldwin. I think if people actually knew her the way I do, they would be quite surprised. This post may come out of left field since I don’t post about her or any family members much,” she wrote alongside a picture of her and Hilaria. “I expect misinformed comments and plenty of comments about me only playing nice so I can secure my inheritance.”

Ireland went on to defend her relationship with her stepmother, noting that the yoga instructor “had a far more complex and chaotic upbringing than” people realize, which could be they “bonded.”

Retired NBA player Davis and partner Stewart will perform a Cha Cha to “U Can’t Touch This” by MC Hammer.