Plus, details on a new Disney+ theme night, returning pros, and a fresh co-host.
Dancing With the Starsis cha-cha’ing its way over toDisney+, the first ever live show on the streaming platform.
“We don’t have ad breaks anymore,” executive producer Conrad Green tells EW.
ABC/Sebastian Kim
“And the knock-on effect is that we don’t have all that lovely time to reset things.
It makes the production super live.
Len Goodman,Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, andDerek Houghwill all return to the judging table.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: You’re moving to Disney+.
Is that going to allow you to showcase longer dance numbers?
They’re physically very taxing, and these are amateurs doing it.
You see the beginning, middle and end.
But, in the past, you always had to hit exactly two hours for the show.
You don’t have to anymore now that we’re on the streamer.
There’s not another show immediately following us.
It’s not like there’s dead air if we’re a little bit under.
The show can run at a slightly more natural pace.
The first show is going to be busy.
It’s going to be two hours absolutely packed full of people and stories and amazing performances.
But the biggest, biggest change as well is Alfonso coming in as a co-host.
It was a couple of reasons.
No one’s going to be better at that than Alfonso.
He knows the dancers really well.
He really knows what he’s talking about.
They worked together onFresh Prince of Bel-Air.
They have lots of chemistry.
They like working together; they always have.
It felt like a natural fit.
He’ll bring a warmth and human interest to it.
The move to Disney+ also means the show will air live on both coasts for the first time.
Do you anticipate that propelling an influx in voters?
I don’t know quite what to expect.
But when it dropped down to one reveal that night, people on the West Coast didn’t vote.
I’m very glad that it is now fully inclusive.
It’s live live live across the whole country.
People in Canada are able to vote now as well.
It’s a much broader base.
And I think it will help audiences feel engaged with the show.
This year is maybe your biggest assembly of reality stars ever.
With Charli and Heidi [D’Amelio], for me, it was the mother-daughter thing.
People from reality shows like Teresa, like Gabby, they have really good personalities.
There’s a reason they’ve become stars of those shows.
They’re open for the challenge of something like this.
That’s really what you want to watch on the show.
Last year, you had JoJo Siwa who had a huge YouTube presence.
Now, you have a TikTok star with Charli.
What has prompted adding social media stars to the cast?
Where do people spend their time now?
A younger audience, particularly, a lot of them don’t watch traditional television programs.
You want to be able to reach those people.
You want to be able to reflect this huge array of what stardom is in the 21st century.
You’ve got to keep up with the change in taste of the audience.
You’ve got to know where the audience goes.
It’s one of the reasons why moving to Disney+ is a move for the future.
Increasingly, people are choosing to watch television on streamers rather than on networks.
You have two contestants this year who might have some more unique challenges.
You have Selma Blair with her MS diagnosis, and Daniel Durant who is deaf.
Are there certain adjustments you have to make in the competition for them?
We always talk to them and have a go at understand their condition.
But by and large the competition is the competition.
Sometimes we allow people a little bit extra time.
That’s quite a challenge for a choreographer, so we gave them a couple of extra days.
And we’ve been constantly surprised.
Selma’s story and Daniel’s story, they are amazing in the mix.
How long have you been trying to make this happen?
Michael performed on the show years ago, and he’s a brilliant guy.
That’s going to be a really special night.
We’ve got some other great themed nights coming up, which we’ll be announcing along the way.
In week 2 of the show, we’re going to be doing an Elvis night.
We’ve got full access to all of the Elvis catalogue.
Will fan favorites like Halloween and Disney night return?
Everything from Marvel to Disney Pixar, all of the animated films, all of their live-action films.
There’s such a range.
You mentioned that you’re going to have the skybox again.
Might we start to see a studio audience again anytime soon?
Yes, we are getting an audience back.
Everyone needs to be fully vaccinated and everyone will be tested before they come in.
It should feel like a special event, and it felt a little bit empty over the COVID years.
On the pro side of things, you’ve got two audience favorites returning.
How did that come about?
Did they just both have openings in their schedule?
Or what was the process there?
We’re always talking with people who’ve been on the show, and just checking in.
When you get a celebrity, you think, “Who will be the best partner?”
Louis is great to have back.
He’s almost the granddaddy of the group in a way because he was there for show one.
Cheryl [Ladd] really likes him; they get on so well.
Those are a natural match.
Charli has got a ton of potential.
She’s got a lot of dance background.
I reached out to him and said, “Are you interested?”
and he thought about it and said, “Yeah, let’s go for it.”
He loves the show.
He’s obviously got his music and acting and all the other things he’s been doing.
But he just thought, “Why not?
Let’s give it a go.”
I can already see the competition in his eyes.
You probably don’t want to weigh in on who you think could be likely to take the trophy.
There’s some people you expect to be good because of things they’ve done in their careers.
There’s some people you have no idea.
I had no idea that Jordin Sparks is a very good dancer.
There’s a number of people who have showed quite a lot of promise.
But it’s a show that writes itself along with the audience.
And that’s the fun of it.
