Dancing With The Stars has eliminated Guillermo Rodriguez and Witney Carson after its first-ever Super Bowl Night.
Their salsa to Bad Bunny’s Tití Me Preguntó scored 22 out of 40 during the October 13 episode. That left the Jimmy Kimmel Live! star bottom of the leaderboard, ending his bid for the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy.
Dancing With The Stars’ Guillermo Rodriguez thanks Witney Carson after exit
Guillermo thanked the audience and his professional partner as their time in the ballroom came to an end.
“I want to say thank you to all the audience,” he said after his elimination.
He added: “Witney, I love you for teaching me how to dance.”
Witney, who is pregnant with her third child, praised Guillermo for looking after her throughout the competition. She thanked him for making the series enjoyable, adding: “It felt like an empowering season.”
Social media was flooded with disappointed comments from fans. On YouTube beneath their performance, one person wrote: “So sad to see them go. My favourite partnership this season. Love you both!”
Another wrote: “Guillermo really improved! I wish they could have stayed in longer. Guillermo and Witney have been so fun and truly a joy to watch.”
Someone else wrote: “We gonna miss you Guillermo. You really brought the Latino fire to the stage and we very proud of you.”
A person added: “This is the most memorable dance for the entire night. It’s so good and so fun, so many wow moments, I was cheering all the way and surprised by Guillermo swag and charisma. Guillermo can dance, no doubt! Whitney did an amazing job. Gonna miss watching them.”
Dancing With The Stars leaders share season-high score
At the other end of the leaderboard, Jenna Dewan and Ezra Frech tied with 36 points apiece. Those totals marked the highest scores of season 35 so far.
Jenna performed a paso doble to Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance with Val Chmerkovskiy, collecting four nines. Ezra and Daniella Karagach matched them with their closing salsa to Nelly’s Hot in Herre.
Football also made its way onto the judging panel. ESPN’s Monday Night Football announcer Joe Buck joined Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli.
The special celebrated music from former Super Bowl halftime performers, ahead of ABC and ESPN’s Super Bowl LXI coverage. The game will air in February 2027.
Maura Higgins scores 33 as Dedication Night awaits
Maura Higgins and Mark Ballas opened the show with a tango to Rihanna’s Only Girl (In the World). They earned 33 out of 40, while Amber Glenn and Pasha Pashkov scored 34 for their samba.
Julia Stiles and Ezra Sosa also finished on 33, as did Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson.
Read more: Maura Higgins divides fans with top Dancing With the Stars score after ‘crying in toilets’
Former NFL players Emmitt Smith, Donald Driver, DeMarcus Ware and Danny Amendola returned to perform during the special.
Next up is Dedication Night, when the remaining celebrities will honour someone or something special in their lives.
Viewers can watch Dancing With The Stars on Tuesdays at 8pm ET on ABC and Disney+, with Hulu streaming the following day.
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