Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro

Week 1: The Journey Begins: Technique with Derek Hough

Contestants were placed in same-sex couples at random and tested on basic technique.^[23] Six-time mirrorball champion Derek Hough appeared as a guest judge and mentor.^[24] He performed a demonstration routine set to "Baianá" by Barbatuques with professional dancer Lily Cornish, who won the Australian iteration of Dancing with the Stars twice.^[23]

The male couples performed the jive, while the female couples performed the samba.^[23] Each performance featured a solo section choreographed by the contestants, and a side-by-side section choreographed and taught by Hough.^[23] The contestants were judged individually; the worst-performing male and female dancers, as chosen by the judges, were eliminated.^[23]

Couples are listed in the order they performed.

Week 2: Stories Without Words: Storytelling with Brandon Armstrong

Contestants were placed in opposite-sex couples at random and were tasked to share a personal story through dance.^[25] Dancing with the Stars finalist Brandon Armstrong appeared as a guest judge and mentor.^[26] He performed a demonstration routine with Lily Cornish set to "Rescue" by Lauren Daigle, which was based on his experience being adopted into a white family.^[25]

After deciding whose story to tell, the couples selected an appropriate dance style and choreographed the routine together.^[25] On the day before the performance, host Robert Irwin had a heart-to-heart conversation with Allen to help him emotionally process his and Adele's routine.^[25] The couple with the least compelling performance, as chosen by the judges, were placed in jeopardy; one dancer from that couple was eliminated.^[25]

Couples are listed in the order they performed.

Notes

Week 3: You're Only as Strong as Your Weakest Link: Group Work with Britt Stewart

Contestants were tested on their teamwork skills with group dances.^[27] Two-time Dancing with the Stars semi-finalist Britt Stewart appeared as a guest judge and mentor.^[27] She performed a demonstration routine to "All Shook Up" by Whissell with an assortment of professional dancers.^[28] For their first challenge, contestants worked together to learn the choreography to Stewart's routine in three hours; a nod to the amount of time Dancing with the Stars pros have to learn and perform an opening number during every live episode.^[28] They performed on-the-spot for the judges, who singled out the two worst-performing dancers.^[28]

Because Nina and Tristen were declared the weakest performers, they served as team captains for the second challenge: creating their own group performance.^[28] They were allowed to pick their team members and were given a dance style to choreograph: either the paso doble or the tango.^[28] The team that impressed the judges the most were safe from elimination.^[28] Natalie suffered a black eye and a concussion during rehearsals for the first challenge.^[29] She was not medically cleared to return to the competition, forcing her to be eliminated by default.^[29]

Groups are listed in the order they performed.

Notes

Week 4: Bring on the Intensity: Chemistry with Jenna Johnson

Contestants were tested on their trust and chemistry with intimate performances.^[30] Two-time mirrorball champion Jenna Johnson appeared as a guest judge and mentor.^[30] She performed a demonstration routine to "You Don't Own Me" by Nikki Williams with professional dancer Jarryd Byrne, who won the Australian iteration of Dancing with the Stars once.^[31]

Johnson instructed the contestants to dance with each other in a form of speed dating to see who had the most natural chemistry.^[31] She then asked the female dancers to select the male dancer they wanted to work with.^[31] If more than one woman picked the same man, he was allowed to pick his partner; the other woman was given the chance to pick again.^[31] Nina and Stephani both selected Allen and no one selected Tristen.^[31] Allen ultimately chose Nina as his partner, and Stephani chose Tristen.^[31] From there, the couples randomly drew a dance style, either the rumba or the Argentine tango, and accompanying music.^[30] They choreographed the routines and were also allowed to spend time together outside of rehearsals.^[31] The couple who presented the weakest performance was eliminated from the competition.^[31]

Couples are listed in the order they performed.

Week 5: "Wow" Moments with Daniella Karagach

Contestants were challenged to impress the judges with contemporary routines that incorporated a viral move from Dancing with the Stars and featured an original "wow" moment.^[32] Mirrorball champion Daniella Karagach appeared as a guest judge and mentor.^[32] She performed a demonstration routine with Jarryd Byrne set to "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" by Lorde.^[33]

Host Robert Irwin took the contestants to Australia Zoo before rehearsals started to gain choreography inspiration from animals.^[32] In a spin from the previous week, Karagach asked the male dancers to select the female dancer they wanted to work with.^[33] If more than one man picked the same woman, she was allowed to pick her partner.^[33] Erik and AJ both selected Selena and no one selected Nina.^[33] Selena ultimately chose Erik as her partner, and AJ was then paired with Nina.^[33] The couple who failed to deliver a "wow" moment, as chosen by the judges, were placed in jeopardy; one dancer from that couple was eliminated.^[33]

Couples are listed in the order they performed.

Week 6: But Can You Teach? Coaching Superfans with Witney Carson

The five quarter-finalists were given two days to teach an amateur celebrity dancer a ballroom routine for a spot in the semi-finals.^[34] Two-time mirrorball champion Witney Carson appeared as a guest judge and mentor.^[34] She performed a demonstration routine with Jarryd Byrne set to "She Wants to Move" by N.E.R.D.^[35]

Host Robert Irwin introduced the contestants to five superfans of Dancing with the Stars who had some dance experience, but not in ballroom.^[35] The pairings were decided at random and each couple were assigned one of the five standard ballroom styles to coach and perform.^[35] On the night before the performance, Carson met with each superfan to learn their progress, their relationships with the contestants, and their confidence levels going into show night.^[35] The contestant who presented the weakest choreography and teaching abilities was eliminated.^[35]

Couples are listed in the order they performed.

Week 7: Paired with the Pros: Semi-Finals with Kym Johnson

The four semi-finalists were tasked to choreograph and perform two routines in the span of two days for a spot in the finale.^[37] They first performed a Latin routine with a pro on Dancing with the Stars, and later performed a ballroom routine with each other.^[38] Rylee Arnold, Gleb Savchenko, Jan Ravnik and Witney Carson appeared to perform with the contestants.^[38] The quartet performed a demonstration routine set to "Talk To Me" by Robyn.^[37]

Two-time mirrorball champion Kym Johnson appeared as a guest judge and mentor.^[38] The semi-finalists randomly drew their partners and dance styles for each routine.^[37] In the first round, the contestants were given full creative control of the performance, and the pros were tasked to observe them and report their thoughts and critiques to the judges.^[39] No one was put in jeopardy this week; the contestant who presented the weakest performance was immediately eliminated.^[37]

Couples are listed in the order they performed.

Week 8: The Final Step: Finale with Derek Hough and Witney Carson

For the title of "Next Pro," the three finalists were given three days to choreograph, teach, and perform two routines with a Dancing with the Stars celebrity finalist in front of a live studio audience.^[40] They first performed a routine based on their favorite dance style, and later performed their freestyle routine.^[40] Season 31 champion Charli D'Amelio, season 29 runner-up Nev Schulman, and the Athletes season champion Adam Rippon appeared to perform with the contestants.^[41]

Six-time mirrorball champion Derek Hough appeared as a guest judge, and two-time mirrorball champion Witney Carson did triple duty: co-hosting with Robert Irwin, a guest performer, and a guest judge/mentor.^[41] The opening number, choreographed by Carson, was set to "Free Yourself (The Alias Remix)" by Jessie Ware.^[40]

Couples are listed in the order they performed.

Development

The Next Pro was produced by BBC Studios.^[42] Conrad Green, the showrunner and executive producer of Dancing with the Stars,^[43] reprised his role for the series.^[44] Ryan O'Dowd, Krystal Whitney, Alex Cross, and Jenny Groom additionally served as executive producers.^[44] Deena Katz, the casting director of Dancing with the Stars,^[45] and Quinn Lipton were co-executive producers.^[44]

Creating The Next Pro was a priority for Green and Katz, as they wanted to refocus the franchise's energy on "making the [professional] dancer the center of this, because they are the creative hub of the show. There's a huge creative team around them who are super talented, but it's them at the core of it with their choreography, with their passion, with their patience, that drive the whole enterprise."^[46]

Casting

A casting call for BBC Studios, who were searching for "standout dancers with world-class technique, star quality, and the ability to light up a stage," was published on social media by The Voice's casting manager Lissette Pinon in October 2025.^[47]

Robert Irwin was first approached to host The Next Pro while he was competing on the thirty-fourth season of Dancing with the Stars, which he ultimately won.^[48] Three-time mirrorball champion Mark Ballas and his mother Shirley Ballas, the head judge of the British competition program Strictly Come Dancing, were cast to judge the series.^[49] A third judges slot is filled with a rotating judge each week.^[50] Guest judges include Derek Hough, Witney Carson, Kym Johnson, Britt Stewart, Jenna Johnson, Brandon Armstrong, and Daniella Karagach.^[51][52][53] The last four guests were performing on the Dancing with the Stars: Live! tour at the time and missed select performances on rotating schedules to participate in The Next Pro.^[54] Rylee Arnold, who did not perform as a full-time member in the tour for health reasons, filled in for the pros and also participated in the series.^[55]

Filming

Production for The Next Pro commenced in Brisbane, the capital city of Queensland, Australia, in February 2026,^[47][56] which allowed Irwin to maintain his commitments to Australia Zoo.^[57] Filming locations included the Thomas Dixon Centre, home of Queensland Ballet.^[58] John-Paul Langbroek, Queensland's Minister for the Arts, reported that The Next Pro contributed A$7.2 million to the state's economy and employed around 110 local cast and crew members.^[58] Its release would "showcase Brisbane to an international audience," as it prepared to host the 2032 Summer Olympics and Summer Paralympics.^[58]