While reports of a cast have been floating around for weeks, save for the contestants revealed in the months leading up to the season, the final announcement was slated for September 2 on Good Morning America, revealing not only the cast, but their partner pros.
Robert Irwin and Witney Carson took home the season 34 Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy
Speaking of whom, Sharna Burgess announced that she will return to the show for the first time this season after a five-year hiatus. Also joining the cast for the first time, we have Adele Zaikman, who won the show's spin-off Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro on August 31, earning a spot on the cast.
Here are all the stars vying for the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy this season, updating live…
Fresh off her appearance on The Traitors season 4, where she finished as the last Faithful standing, Love Island alum Maura Higgins was the first contestant announced for the season during April's Hulu Upfront. And we're hoping she brings her many hats with her!
She said at the event: "I'm a strong believer in manifesting. I had it on my vision board. And now it is happening, which I cannot believe, and I know it's going to be so, so hard. But because I really want to do it, I'm going to put my all into it."
Also revealed during the Hulu upfront was fellow Traitors alum Ciara Miller, following her breakout summer when she was caught on the right side of a Summer House fallout. When Ciara's best friend Amanda Batula began a romance with her ex-boyfriend West Wilson, just like Ariana Madix before her, she became the nation's sweetheart.
"I am so excited to join Season 35 of 'Dancing With the Stars.' I feel like this is the perfect moment," she shared at April's Upfront.
In May, at Disney's own Upfront, Savannah Bananas second baseman and TikTok sensation Jackson Olson was announced as the third contestant joining the cast. On translating his moves from the field to the ballroom, he told E! News: "I can't move my feet in a way that I can on a ballroom floor that I can on dirt and grass."
"It's so tough on that baseball field to dance. But in that ballroom, I've become a different animal, I think, because it's a three-hour rehearsal block. And I'm like, 'Let's go for three more hours.' I want to get this down."
Guillermo Rodriguez, best known as Jimmy Kimmel's lovable sidekick and red carpet correspondent, became the fourth star announced for the season 35 cast, confirmed by the late night host himself back in June.
In August, pro Witney Carson (the defending champion, after winning season 34 with Robert Irwin) confirmed that she would be Guillermo's professional partner, the first pairing to be fully revealed.
We're going to Save the Last Dance for Julia Stiles, who'll be bringing a wave of nostalgia into the ballroom. The actress is best known for starring in some of the most iconic teen films of the late '90s and early aughts, from 10 Things I Hate About You to Down to You, as well as the Bourne franchise, Hustlers, and shows like The Lake and Blue.