Dancing with the Stars season 32 ends with a surprising winner - all the details
Marvel star Xochitl Gomez has won Dancing with the Stars season 32 after two incredible performances - a tango and a freestyle - that wowed the judges, scoring two perfect 30s for each dance.
Xochitl beat out fellow finalists Alyson Hannigan, Ariana Madix, Charity Lawson, and Jason Mraz. In tears as they accepted the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy from 2022 winner Charli D'Amelio, Xochitl simply exclaimed said: "Oh my God"
Their professional partner, Val Chmerkovskiy - who has won twice before -- was left speechless.
In a touching gesture during the Season 32 premiere, cohosts Alfonso and Julianne announced that the season's winning duo would be presented with the renamed Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy, immortalizing the legacy of the late head judge.
Len had stepped down from the show in 2022, shocking his co-judges with the announcement, but his death in April 2023 at the age of 78 was deeply felt across the dance community.
Midway through the season, the show honored Len as a cavalcade of former and current pro dancers including Anna Trebunskaya, Tony Dovolani, Louis van Amstel, and Mark Ballas, united to deliver a dance tribute choreographed by the renowned married duo, Val Chmerkovskiy and Jenna Johnson, and set to the timeless strains of Henry Mancini’s 'Moon River'.
The finale opened up with judges Bruno Tonioli, Derek Hough and Carrie Ann Inaba giving a detailed breakdown of the finalists best two dances of the season, reminding viewers of the live ABC show what a fun season the 2023 episodes had been.
Alyson, along with professional partner Sasha Farber, was the first finalist to take to the dancefloor as she was tasked with performing her week one salsa as a redemption dance, receiving 25 out of 30 from the judges.
Jason and his professional partner Daniella Karagagh was up next, receiving a perfect score of 30 for their Foxtrot, with Bruno declaring it a "pure and classic foxtrot," adding: "Len would love this.'
Ariana and Pasha Pashkov performed a samba, and the TV personality was awarded 29 points, while Charity's tango with Artem Chigvintsev also received a 29; Xochitl also performed a tango and received a perfect score of 30.
For the second half of the finale, the finalists were all given the chance to perform a freestyle routine with Charity and Artem incorporating cheerleading into their routine, and receiving a 30 out of 30, while Jason and Daniella challenged themselves with a high-speed routine that showed off the Grammy winner's unique performance style with elements of lindy hop.
The judges were up on their feet for the entire performance, and praised his musical technicality and the "feel-good factor," also awarding him a 30 out of 30.
Ariana and Pasha also received a 30 out of 30 from the judges after a street-inspired routine that left Carrie Ann screaming in joy, while Alyson received her first 10 from Bruno for her freestyle routine, which mixed Latin and ballroom.
Xochitl performed the final dance of the season, and Carrie praised the "courageous" routine, and her connection with professional partner Val. She received 30 out of 30, meaning her final four performances from the sem-final and final all were perfect scores.
Former hopefuls including Barry Williams, Harry Jowsey, and Lele Pons also returned to the dancefloor performing a group routine, while the three-hour long finale also saw performances from former winners Charli, Hannah Brown (season 24) and Rassha Jennings (season 18).
Witney Carson also returned to dance with Alfonso, 13 seasons after they won the show together, as did Helio Castroneves, who danced with Julianne as his professional partner in season five.
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