Dancing with the Stars 2024 has confirmed that Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, and Derek Hough will be returning as judges this season. The show will be back on Tuesday, Sept 17, 2024, on ABC and Disney+. You can also stream it the next day on Hulu. Let's take a closer look at the three DWTS personalities.
Inaba is widely known for her 30-season tenure as a judge on ABC's Dancing with the Stars. She is a dancer, choreographer, philanthropist, and Emmy-nominated talk show host.
She has choreographed and staged many popular shows such as American Idol, America Juniors, Dance Fever, TV Land Awards, and Kids Choice Awards. She was a choreographer on the first season of So You Think You Can Dance, then continued to work on DWTS as the only female and American judge for most of its 30-season run.
Inaba said about being the only female judge on the show, "As the only female judge for most of the seasons, I get a lot more hate than the men do and people doubt what I say. Oh I’m going to get emotional. I’m the judge who cries. Yes that’s true, but it’s also because I feel like I have to fight harder for my opinion to be honored."
Bruno Tonioli is a well-known judge on Strictly Come Dancing, which is the UK version of Dancing with the Stars. He is also a choreographer and has worked on many movies, plays, music videos, commercials, concerts, trade shows, and TV series with music legends like Elton John, Michael Jackson, Freddie Mercury, Tina Turner, and Paul McCartney.
In an interview with The Sun talking about DWTS, Tonioli said, "I’m still doing the American one and I’m very passionate about it." Tonioli has been on the show since the very first season.
Hough has won three Emmy Awards and been nominated 11 times. He's the most-nominated male choreographer in Television Academy history. In 2020, Hough became a judge on Dancing with the Stars. Before that, he was a pro dancer on the show, competing in 17 of the first 23 seasons. Hough has won the Mirrorball trophy with celebrity partners such as Brooke Burke, Jennie Garth, Ricki Lake, Nicole Scherzinger, Jennifer Grey, Kellie Pickler, Amber Riley, Amy Purdy, and Bindi Irwin.
He is also a New York Times bestselling author known for his memoir Taking the Lead: Lessons from a Life in Motion. Hough has also toured extensively, including Move – Beyond – Live on Tour (2017), Derek Hough Live: The Tour (2019), and Derek Hough: No Limit (2021).
Alfonso Ribiero and Julianne Hough have been confirmed to return as co-hosts for season 33 of DWTS. We also have a list of rumored contestants that are often discussed in the weeks leading up to the announcement.