Dancing with the Stars Season 34 came to an end tonight. With stars like Andy Richter, Baron Davis, Whitney Leavitt, Jenn Affleck, Scott Hoying, Hilaria Baldwin, Lauren Jauregie, Danielle Fischel, and Corey Feldman already eliminated, the remaining stars came together for one final night. Robert Irwin, Alix Earle, Dylan Efron, Elaine Hendrix, and Jordan Chiles entered, and only one could come out with the win.
Dancing with the Stars Finale Confirms Stunning Champion
The final night of Dancing with the Stars season 34 began with the judge’s choice round. Each dancing duo had to perform a dance they’ve not yet done, adding a new wrinkle. Alix Earle and Val Chmerkovskiy were up first, and judges made them do a samba. Carrie Ann Inaba gave them a 10, Derek Hough echoed that, and Bruno Toniogli made it a perfect score.
Dylan Efron and Daniella Karagach followed suit with a paso doble. Inaba gave him a 9, Hough followed suit, and then Tonoigli gave them a 10 to round it off. Up next, Elaine Hendrix and Alan Bersten were tasked with a rumba, and they received:
- 10 (Inaba)
- 10 (Hough)
- 10 (Toniogli)
Robert Irwin and Witney Carson had to do a quickstep. Irwin suffered a serious injury before in rehearsals, but he pushed through to get a nine (Inaba) and two 10s. Jordan Chiles, Olympic gold medalist, and Ezra Sosa brought the first round to a close with a paso doble and earned a nine (Inaba), and two 10s.
The second round was the instant dance round. Alex and Val went first again, getting to do a cha cha. They received all 10s. Dylan and Daniella got to do a foxtrot second, earning a perfect score again. Elaine and Alan got to do a quickstep and also received three nines.
After that, Robert and Witney did a cha cha and earned, you guessed it, a perfect score across the board. Jordan and Ezra got to do a tango, and they also got a perfect score to close out the second round. The next round was a freestyle round, where dancers and their partners could do whatever they wanted to songs they’d picked out.
First up, Alix and Val floored the judges en route to their third perfect Dancing with the Stars score of the night. Dylan and Daniella had an incredible showing that got them a perfect score as well. Elaine and Alan did a musical-inspired dance number, earning their own perfect score.
Robert and Witney did the penultimate freestyle impeccably, earning yet another perfect score. Jordan and Ezra had no choice but to deliver a perfect score of their own, marking a literally perfect final round of freestyles, and not making the final choice for Dancing with the Stars champion easy.
Final Vote
Of course, judge scores are only a portion of the final results, and sometimes it seems like the fan votes matter way more. Sometimes, fan votes have carried dancers much further than their Dancing with the Stars scores would’ve, even helping Bobby Bones win a season in shocking fashion before.
Over 72 million votes were cast, and the eliminations went in this order:
- Fifth: Elaine and Alan
- Fourth: Dylan and Daniella
- Third: Jordan and Ezra
That left Robert and Witney versus Alix and Val. The winner? Robert and Witney (my choice) took home the mirrorball!
