Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro (colloquially referred to as The Next Pro) is an American reality dance competition television series that premiered on ABC on July 13, 2026. It is a spin-off of the competition series Dancing with the Stars, which is based on the British contest show Strictly Come Dancing, and an expansion of its international franchise.
The series featured twelve up-and-coming professional dancers who lived and trained together in Brisbane. They competed against each other in an audition process to determine who will join the flagship series as a pro. The series is presented by Robert Irwin, with Mark and Shirley Ballas serving as main judges; a third judges slot was filled by a rotating guest each week.
Contestants Television advertisements featuring the twelve contestants were released on April 22, 2026.
+Cast of Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro Dancer Age Residence Dance style(s) Status 27 Los Angeles, California Commercial Jake Monreal 22 Miami, Florida Latin 25 Miami, Florida Latin / Commercial 20 New York, New York BallroomWithdrew 28 Atlanta, GeorgiaBallroom / Hip-hop 26 Los Angeles, California Ballroom / Commercial 26 Tampa, Florida Latin 28 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Latin 36 San Jose, California Latin 21 Los Angeles, California CommercialThird place 31 London, United Kingdom Ballroom / LatinRunner-up 24 Los Angeles, California LatinWinner
Episodes
Elimination chart Color key:
+Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro - Elimination chart Contestant Week 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8Adele 1st Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe SafeWinner AJ 2nd Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe SafeRunner-up Selena 3rd Safe Safe Safe In Jeopardy Safe In Jeopardy In Jeopardy Safe Third place Allen 4th Safe Safe Safe Safe In Jeopardy Safe Safe Eliminated Nina 5th Safe In Jeopardy In Jeopardy Safe In Jeopardy Safe EliminatedErik 6th Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe EliminatedStephani 7th Safe Safe Safe Safe Eliminated Tristen In Jeopardy Safe In Jeopardy In Jeopardy Eliminated Natalie 9th In Jeopardy Safe WithdrewBenji 10th Safe EliminatedBriar 11th EliminatedJake Eliminated Notes
Weekly results Week 1: The Journey Begins: Technique with Derek Hough Contestants were placed in same-sex couples at random and tested on basic technique. Six-time mirrorball champion Derek Hough appeared as a guest judge and mentor. He performed a demonstration routine set to "Baianá" by Barbatuques with professional dancer Lily Cornish, who won the Australian iteration of Dancing with the Stars twice.
The male couples performed the jive, while the female couples performed the samba. Each performance featured a solo section choreographed by the contestants, and a side-by-side section choreographed and taught by Hough. The contestants were judged individually; the worst-performing male and female dancers, as chosen by the judges, were eliminated.
Couples are listed in the order they performed. +Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro – Week 1 Dancer Dance Music Result Erik Jive "APT." – Rosé & Bruno Mars Safe Tristen In Jeopardy Jake Jive "What I Like About You" – 5 Seconds of Summer Eliminated AJ Safe Benji Jive "Blinding Lights" – The Weeknd Safe Allen Safe Selena Samba "Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 0/66" – Bizarrap & Daddy Yankee Safe Natalie In Jeopardy Briar Samba "Mi Gente" – J Balvin & Willy William Eliminated Stephani Safe Adele Samba "Hips Don't Lie" – Shakira feat. Wyclef Jean Safe Nina Safe
Week 2: Stories Without Words: Storytelling with Brandon Armstrong Contestants were placed in opposite-sex couples at random and were tasked to share a personal story through dance. Dancing with the Stars finalist Brandon Armstrong appeared as a guest judge and mentor. He performed a demonstration routine with Lily Cornish set to "Rescue" by Lauren Daigle, which was based on his experience being adopted into a white family.
After deciding whose story to tell, the couples selected an appropriate dance style and choreographed the routine together. On the day before the performance, host Robert Irwin had a heart-to-heart conversation with Allen to help him emotionally process his and Adele's routine. The couple with the least compelling performance, as chosen by the judges, were placed in jeopardy; one dancer from that couple was eliminated.
Couples are listed in the order they performed. +Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro – Week 2 Dancer Dance Music Result Erik Viennese waltz "Hold My Hand" – Lady Gaga Safe Natalie Safe Benji Rumba "Sign of the Times" – Harry Styles Eliminated Nina In Jeopardy Tristen Rumba "Dreaming of You" – Selena Safe Stephani Safe AJ Jive "Runaway Baby" – Bruno Mars Safe Selena Safe Allen Rumba "See You Again (Piano)" – Charlie Puth Safe Adele Safe Notes
Week 3: You're Only as Strong as Your Weakest Link: Group Work with Britt Stewart Contestants were tested on their teamwork skills with group dances. Two-time Dancing with the Stars semi-finalist Britt Stewart appeared as a guest judge and mentor. She performed a demonstration routine to "All Shook Up" by Whissell with an assortment of professional dancers. For their first challenge, contestants worked together to learn the choreography to Stewart's routine in three hours; a nod to the amount of time Dancing with the Stars pros have to learn and perform an opening number during every live episode. They performed on-the-spot for the judges, who singled out the two worst-performing dancers.
Because Nina and Tristen were declared the weakest performers, they served as team captains for the second challenge: creating their own group performance. They were allowed to pick their team members and were given a dance style to choreograph: either the paso doble or the tango. The team that impressed the judges the most were safe from elimination. Natalie suffered a black eye and a concussion during rehearsals for the first challenge. She was not medically cleared to return to the competition, forcing her to be eliminated by default.
Groups are listed in the order they performed. +Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro – Week 3 Dancer Dance Music Result Adele Paso doble "All Shook Up" – Whissell Safe AJ Safe Allen Safe Erik Safe Nina In Jeopardy Selena Safe Stephani Safe Tristen In Jeopardy Natalie colspan="2" Withdrew Erik Paso doble "Are You Gonna Go My Way" – Lenny Kravitz Safe Selena In Jeopardy Stephani Safe Tristen In Jeopardy Adele Tango "Into You (3lau Remix)" – Ariana Grande Safe AJ Safe Allen Safe Nina Safe Notes
Week 4: Bring on the Intensity: Chemistry with Jenna Johnson Contestants were tested on their trust and chemistry with intimate performances. Two-time mirrorball champion Jenna Johnson appeared as a guest judge and mentor. She performed a demonstration routine to "You Don't Own Me" by Nikki Williams with professional dancer Jarryd Byrne, who won the Australian iteration of Dancing with the Stars once.
Johnson instructed the contestants to dance with each other in a form of speed dating to see who had the most natural chemistry. She then asked the female dancers to select the male dancer they wanted to work with. If more than one woman picked the same man, he was allowed to pick his partner; the other woman was given the chance to pick again. Nina and Stephani both selected Allen and no one selected Tristen. Allen ultimately chose Nina as his partner, and Stephani chose Tristen. From there, the couples randomly drew a dance style, either the rumba or the Argentine tango, and accompanying music. They choreographed the routines and were also allowed to spend time together outside of rehearsals. The couple who presented the weakest performance was eliminated from the competition.
Couples are listed in the order they performed. +Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro – Week 4 Couple Dance Music Result Adele & AJ Rumba "You've Got Another Thing Coming" – Teddy Swims Safe Erik & Selena Argentine tango "Human" – Rag'n'Bone Man Safe Stephani & Tristen Rumba "Back to Friends" – Sombr Eliminated Allen & Nina Argentine tango "Down" – Marian Hill In Jeopardy
Week 5: "Wow" Moments with Daniella Karagach Contestants were challenged to impress the judges with contemporary routines that incorporated a viral move from Dancing with the Stars and featured an original "wow" moment. Mirrorball champion Daniella Karagach appeared as a guest judge and mentor. She performed a demonstration routine with Jarryd Byrne set to "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" by Lorde.
Host Robert Irwin took the contestants to Australia Zoo before rehearsals started to gain choreography inspiration from animals. In a spin from the previous week, Karagach asked the male dancers to select the female dancer they wanted to work with. If more than one man picked the same woman, she was allowed to pick her partner. Erik and AJ both selected Selena and no one selected Nina. Selena ultimately chose Erik as her partner, and AJ was then paired with Nina. The couple who failed to deliver a "wow" moment, as chosen by the judges, were placed in jeopardy; one dancer from that couple was eliminated.
Couples are listed in the order they performed. +Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro – Week 5 Dancer Dance Music Result AJ Contemporary "Human" – Christina Perri Safe Nina Safe Adele Contemporary "All That Really Matters" – Illenium & Teddy Swims Safe Allen Safe Erik Contemporary "You Stole the Show" – Sienna Spiro Eliminated Selena In Jeopardy
Week 6: But Can You Teach? Coaching Superfans with Witney Carson The five quarter-finalists were given two days to teach an amateur celebrity dancer a ballroom routine for a spot in the semi-finals. Two-time mirrorball champion Witney Carson appeared as a guest judge and mentor. She performed a demonstration routine with Jarryd Byrne set to "She Wants to Move" by N.E.R.D.
Host Robert Irwin introduced the contestants to five superfans of Dancing with the Stars who had some dance experience, but not in ballroom. The pairings were decided at random and each couple were assigned one of the five standard ballroom styles to coach and perform. On the night before the performance, Carson met with each superfan to learn their progress, their relationships with the contestants, and their confidence levels going into show night. The contestant who presented the weakest choreography and teaching abilities was eliminated.
Couples are listed in the order they performed.
+Celebrity fans of Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro Celebrity Notability Professional partner Social media personality Allen Genkin YouTuber AJ Pritchard Social media personality Adele Zaikman Actor and model Selena Hamilton Social media personality Nina Mayster
+Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro – Week 6 Couple Dance Music Result Nina & Jay Foxtrot "Man I Need" – Olivia Dean Eliminated Adele & Anthony Tango "Just Keep Watching" – Tate McRae Safe AJ & Bailey Viennese waltz "Die for Me" – Zayn Safe Allen & Zaira Waltz "Consequences (Orchestra)" – Camila Cabello Safe Selena & Jeremy Quickstep "Such a Night" – Michael Bublé In Jeopardy
Week 7: Paired with the Pros: Semi-Finals with Kym Johnson The four semi-finalists were tasked to choreograph and perform two routines in the span of two days for a spot in the finale. They first performed a Latin routine with a pro on Dancing with the Stars, and later performed a ballroom routine with each other. Rylee Arnold, Gleb Savchenko, Jan Ravnik and Witney Carson appeared to perform with the contestants. The quartet performed a demonstration routine set to "Talk To Me" by Robyn.