The world has fallen in love with Robert Irwin more each day since the affable Australian joined “Dancing With the Stars.” The son of the late Steve “the Crocodile Hunter” Irwin has an infectious energy and charm, and people are watching his dances on YouTube more than any other dancer.
Robert Irwin Leads the Pack: Season 34 of DWTS Breaks Records
As of September 30, Irwin and Witney Carson’s dance to a jive in Week 1 has 1.6 million views. The second most viewed premiere night dance isn’t even close, with Jen Affleck and Jan Ravnik receiving 351,000 views.
Week 2 saw Irwin’s views drop slightly to 1.2 million for his tango, but he and Carson were still the only dance duo to break 1 million views. Second place went to Jordan Chiles and Ezra Sosa with 490,000 views.
According to Variety, more people tuned in to watch the premiere of “Dancing With the Stars” than they had in five years. DWTS has already set a record number of votes for Season 34, as well. Twenty-one million votes were cast that night, up 163% from the Season 33 premiere.
And then, the show became even popular the following week. According to an ABC press release, the number of people watching and voting in week two showed growth that the show hadn’t seen in 14 years. Thirty-five million people voted in Week 2 — 14 million more than in the previous week. And that massive increase seems to be owed in large part to Robert Irwin.
Celebs Power Through Injuries for the Mirrorball Trophy
September 30 will be TikTok Dance Night on “Dancing With the Stars.” Despite Robert Irwin’s YouTube views, the winner of the Len Wiseman Mirrorball Trophy is still up in the air. No one can be counted out yet, and many of the celebrities have been vocal about the pain they’ve had to endure in their quest to win.
After Week 1 ended, Alix Earle took to TikTok to share her many injuries with her fans. “I have bruises on my collarbones, my toenail came off during practice today, this is like, one big, swollen bruise. It’s so swollen,” she said, pointing out all of her various injuries. “I don’t think I can walk.”
Danielle Fishel has been dancing despite a gruesome-looking hamstring injury. Like Earle, she’s been fighting through pain to win the trophy. After joking that the only way she’d be quitting the show was if she had to be carried out, she decided to pick the brain of Mandy Moore on her podcast.
Moore, a “Dancing With the Stars” choreographer who also worked on Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour,” gave Fishel some dance tips. What were her suggestions? Be bold, and dance like a maniac.
