On Wednesday, the Dancing With the Stars Season 28 cast was revealed. The shock of no troupe, new pros and a questionable cast member or two has led to a week of confusion, controversy and questions.
Dance Dish is here to answer those questions. We will continually update this page leading up to the premiere, so be sure to bookmark it as a handy guide.
When is the premiere?
Monday, September 16 at 8 p.m. e/7 p.m. c
Who are the pros?
Brandon Armstrong
Lindsay Arnold
Alan Bersten
Cheryl Burke
Witney Carson
Val Chmerkovskiy
Sasha Farber
Jenna Johnson
Daniella Karagach
Keo Motsepe
Peta Murgatroyd
Pasha Pashkov
Gleb Savchenko
Emma Slater
Who are Daniella Karagach & Pasha Pashkov?
Daniella Karagach and Pasha Pashkov are a husband-and-wife ballroom team who are the seven-time United States 10-Dance Champions and Latin Champions. Fans of World of Dance remember their incredibly beautiful work on Season 2. Daniella most recently toured with Derek Hough as his lead dancer.
Who are the celebs for Season 28?
Christie Brinkley
James Van Der Beek
Karamo Brown
Hannah Brown
Kel Mitchell
Sean Spicer
Ally Brooke
Kate Flannery
Lauren Alaina
Ray Lewis
Mary Wilson
Lamar Odom
Why are there only 12 celebrities, but 14 pros?
The DWTS team looked to Strictly Come Dancing and took elements of the show that worked well in the U.K. Viewers will see some of the Strictly format make its way to DWTS this season. Eliminating the troupe and calling everyone a pro — even those without a celeb partner — is a part of the show revamp.
What will the two pros without a celebrity do on the show?
Their roles will be very similar to what the troupe did in prior seasons. They will be a part of group numbers, assist in rehearsals and act as a stand-in if a pro is injured, etc.
UPDATE 8/26: On SiriusXM's On the Pulse Morning Show, Tom Bergeron revealed Keo Motsepe and Daniella Karagach will be the two pros in this position.
Who will not be on Season 28 of DWTS?
Artem Chigvintsev
Sharna Burgess: E! reported her absence is due to budget cuts.
Morgan Larson
Hayley Erbert
Artur Adamski
Where is Mandy Moore going?
She has taken on a new project with NBC. She is choreographing Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist, a show about "a whip-smart computer coder forging her way in San Francisco. After an unusual event, she starts to hear the innermost wants and desires of the people around her through songs."
It's going to be a fantastic series! You might also spot Britt, Morgan and Robert Roldan in the pilot.
Who is choreographing the group numbers and bumpers now?
The show will be using a variety of outside choreographers for the opening numbers as well as some of the pros, who are interested in choreographing for the show.
Val, assisted by Jenna, choreographed the number for the Good Morning America reveal on Aug. 21.
How much are the celebrities getting paid for Season 28?
While all of us would probably enjoy this paycheck for DWTS, the celebs are taking a pay cut in 2019, according to Variety. In prior seasons, stars earned up to $345,000. This season, the starting pay is "$125,000 for the show’s rehearsal period and their first two weeks on the air." If they make it to the finale, their pay will top out around $295,000.
When will we know who each pro is paired up with?
Everyone is going to have to wait until Monday, Sept. 16 to find out who the pros will be dancing with. However, the DWTS fans are the best sleuths on the internet, so everyone might have it figured out before premiere day.
UPDATE 8/24: Executive producer Andrew Llinares is claimed at D23 Expo on Friday that he was the only one who knew the pairings, but Dance Dish has learned that some of the pros already know their partners.
UPDATE 8/26: Confirmed Partnerships:
Kel Mitchell & Witney Carson
Lauren Alaina & Gleb Savchenko
Ray Lewis & Cheryl Burke
Hannah Brown & Alan Bersten
UPDATE 8/27:
Sean Spicer & Lindsay Arnold
Karamo Brown & Jenna Johnson
Lamar Odom & Peta Murgatroyd
UPDATE: 9/7:
Ally Brooke & Sasha Farber
UPDATE: 9/16:
Mary Wilson & Brandon Armstrong
James Van Der Beek & Emma Slater
Kate Flannery & Pasha Pashkov
Sailor Brinkley Cook (New Celeb) & Val Chmerkovskiy
What is happening with the voting?
There will be a live voting element for Season 28 and in fact, results will be released the same-night based off of the dances the viewers saw in that same episode. While the West Coast will be able to vote, they will not be able to see the dances live unless they have the East Coast feed for DWTS.
The judges will also have some additional capabilities that have yet to be announced. Are we finally getting a Judges' Save?
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This week's To The Pointe episode: