“Dancing With the Stars” judge Derek Hough isn’t keeping his predictions to himself for season 35.
The professional dancer shared one contestant he believes will make the finals this season.
Derek’s Predictions
Speaking to TV Insider on Thursday, October 29, two days after “Horror Movie Night,” Hough shared which pair has what it takes.
“He could absolutely do it,” Hough said of Connor Wood and partner Rylee Arnold. “Honestly, I personally think I believe he’ll be in the finale. I believe that.”
He added, “I think they have such a great partnership. And that’s the thing, you could not have the right things technically. He did samba the other week, and that’s the hardest dance on the show. There’s more requirements in that, technically, than a salsa or jazz, but man, people love him. I love him. He’s such a good dude. We have the same friends, and he’s a good man.”
Connor and Rylee earned their first 10s of the season during the Halloween-themed night. Carrie Ann Inaba and Derek both gave the duo a perfect score. They ended with a score of 37 out of 40 and advanced to the next round.
“I think Connor is incredibly popular. I think people are rooting for him,” Hough added.. “They want him to do well, so I think he has a fanbase that can push him all the way to win. Then, you obviously have Ezra Frech, who is extraordinary. I’m not even going to mention his prosthetic or anything like that because I don’t even need to. He’s great. He’s a great dancer.”
Who’s Left?
In addition to Connor and Rylee, seven couples remain in the competition.
Jenna Dewan and partner Val Chmerkovskiy, Amber Glenn and partner Pasha Pashkov, Ezra Frech and partner Daniella Karagach, Maura Higgins and partner Mark Ballas, Julia Stiles and partner Ezra Sosa, and Tatyana Ali and partner Jan Ravnik will all hit the dance floor for Disney Week on Monday, November 2.
“I think it was an act of God that we were paired together,” Connor told Entertainment Weekly of Rylee. “We don’t really have any missed connects. I was just saying that we have this connection that isn’t really faulted by like, ‘Oh, I can’t get this step,’ or ‘I can’t do this move.'”
He continued, “I don’t see myself doing that dance at all, and then we get through it, slowly, and that would normally cause some strife or frustrations. No! No crash outs yet.”
Fans seemed to agree with Derek as early in the season many took to social media to praise the podcaster.
“He’s a very charismatic young white guy who’s going to try very hard and make lots of TikTok content; I could easily see him getting lots of votes,” wrote one follower.
A second fan added, “I actually think he’ll do well. Not exactly expecting a finale, but he’s way more popular than half the cast this season. He’s also very good friends with Dylan Efron so he’ll definitely do ok on votes.”
‘DWTS’ Judge Derek Hough Reveals His Prediction for Who Will Be in the Finals