It’s September, which means it’s finally Dancing with the Stars season on the 2026 TV schedule. Season 35’s cast is completely stacked with Olympians, Paralympians, reality stars, actors, musicians and influencers. So there are plenty of people angling to take home the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy this fall, but one celebrity unsure of her skills is Maura Higgins. And it doesn’t help that her partner Mark Ballas gave her a brutally honest review.
Higgins was one of the first celebrities announced for Season 35. Not long after the announcement, she revealed that she wanted her Traitors buddy, Ballas, to be her partner, but she would have been fine with just about anyone, with one exception. Luckily, the Love Island UK star’s wish came true, and the partnership has come with some tough love. While speaking with People (as seen on TikTok), the duo talked about how things have been going. Ballas revealed that Higgins wondered how horrible she is with her dancing, and she was definitely not expecting his answer:
- Mark Ballas: During the run, she was like, ‘Oh, I want to do Dancing with the Stars.’ I was like, ‘Maura, you can’t make it through a 45-minute challenge. How are you going to make it through ten hours of rehearsal? On our first day after rehearsal, she turned to me. She was like, ‘Mark, on a scale of 1 to 10, how shit am I?’
- Maura Higgins: You didn't really answer me.
- Ballas: A four.
- Higgins: A four?! That's so bad.
- Ballas: I’m joking. She’s a true beginner, so we’re building it brick by brick.
Considering Higgins really bonded with Ballas on The Traitors, it’s not surprising that they would have a playful relationship, and I absolutely love it. I can only imagine how both fun and serious their rehearsals are, and I'm eager to get more insight into that. If anything, though Ballas doesn’t seem to mind building up Higgins’ dance skills from the ground up, and it will be exciting to see how far they’re able to make it.
That being said, it’s not like Higgins came into the show with absolutely zero dancing skills. Over the summer, Val Chmerkovskiy was whipping Higgins into shape, and she really put in the work. The two were dancing together and, if she didn’t end up being partners with Ballas, it would have been fun to see her with Chmerkovskiy. Yet now I need DWTS to bring back Switch-Up Week so I can truly see her dancing with him.
Ahead of Higgins’ addition to DWTS, plenty of pros were campaigning to get a different Traitors contestant on the show. During the DWTS tour earlier this year, Ezra Sosa and Hailey Bills kickstarted a campaign to get Season 4 winner Rob Rausch in the ballroom. Ballas jumped on the train, having had a bromance with Rausch on that reality competition series. Rausch himself hilariously declined since he “can’t move like that,” but I wouldn’t be surprised if he still wound up in the ballroom to cheer on his pals this season.
Regardless of her dance skills, Higgins has some pretty tough competition. There's no way of knowing who will be winning the big prize for Season 35 but, luckily, fans won’t have to wait much longer to get a taste of their favorites. Dancing with the Stars' special two-night premiere will air on Tuesday, September 15, and Wednesday, September 16, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and will be streamable with a Disney+ subscription.
