'Dancing with the Stars' Season 35 Premiere Sends Home a Surprise Contestant — and Viewers Are Not Happy with the Judges

The second night of the "Dancing with the Stars" premiere ended with a painful early goodbye - but viewers were already questioning the judges before the results arrived.

Eight female celebrities entered the ballroom on September 16, 2026. By the end of the night, one couple was out, several scores were under fire, and a heartfelt tribute had given the premiere its most poignant moment.

Night two of the Season 35 premiere put the female celebrities in the spotlight after the male contestants competed one night earlier. The stakes were immediate.

According to ABC News, judges' scores and viewer votes would be combined to determine which couple advanced and which one became the second pairing eliminated from the season.

Before that result arrived, however, viewers had plenty to say about the numbers appearing on the judges' paddles.

The Numbers Started a Debate Before Anyone Went Home

The judges — Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough, and Bruno Tonioli — gave the eight female couples scores ranging from 12 to 21 out of 30, according to The Hollywood Reporter (THR).

Tatyana Ali and Jan Ravnik finished at the bottom of the leaderboard with 12 points. Sarah Jane Nader and Hailey Bills received 14, while Ciara Miller and Brandon Armstrong finished one point ahead of them with 15.

Giada De Laurentiis and Alan Bersten earned 16 points. Amber Glenn and Pasha Pashkov, as well as Julia Stiles and Ezra Sosa, each received 18.

Jenna Dewan and Val Chmerkovskiy finished with 19 points. Maura Higgins and Mark Ballas led the female field with 21.

The scores prompted criticism from viewers who believed the women were being judged more harshly than the male celebrities who had competed the previous night.

On Instagram, one netizen asked, "the scoring on the women is ridiculous. why are they getting judged so much harder than the men?????"

A second person called the judging unprecedented, writing, "i think this is the worst scoring i've ever seen in dancing with the stars history that was perfection..." A commenter gave a brief assessment: "underscored my opinion."

One viewer was more emphatic, declaring, "BEST DANCE OF THE WEEK. CRIMINALLY UNDERSCORED." A separate response questioned the judges' numbers directly: "The judges are being weird with the scores 😒."

Criticism continued in a separate discussion. One commenter wrote, "They're scoring the girls more harshly." A viewer questioned the judging throughout the episode: "Questioning the scores all night! What's going on fam?"

Another person drew a direct comparison with night one's results, writing, "Underscored! Her scores lower than some of the male stars is INSANE."

One more commenter called for consistency in the scoring: "UNDERSCORED SO BADLY BE FAIR WITH SCORING."

The Results Turned One Low Score Into an Early Exit

When the results were announced, Nader and Bills were eliminated after their jive to Avril Lavigne's "Sk8er Boi."

The two early exits drew reactions online. One netizen wrote, "There's no way they shouldve been eliminated first. How did every1 fight 4 hailey to be a pro and then not vote 4 them? So disappointed. They shouldve stayed like 2 more weeks [sic]."

A commenter questioned both eliminations, "Anyone else getting weird vibes that both the newest pros got eliminated? Both dances weren't bad and it's also first night."

One person reacted directly to Nader and Bills' departure: "yeah so i'll never forgive whoever is responsible for you guys not advancing." A separate response was blunt: "THEY WERE ROBBED."

One viewer argued that the pair deserved more time in the competition, "Its a crime they got eliminated, they actually did so good. Better than some of the other contestants IMO [sic]."

Not every reaction opposed the elimination. One commenter wrote, "I felt bad for Hailey, but I think this was the right choice... 🤷🏽‍♀️" The debate over the judges' scores extended beyond the eliminated pair.

Before the results were announced, Nader reflected on her partnership with Bills during her post-performance remarks, according to E! News.

"I think that us being on this ballroom floor together as two women is just so powerful," Nader said. "And I hope that it shows you can dance with whoever you want, you can love whoever you want, and being yourself is the best power."

Why One Performance Meant More Than Its 18 Points

Stiles and Sosa received 18 out of 30 for their dance to Dolly Parton's "9 to 5." The score put them comfortably above the bottom of the leaderboard. But the story behind their song added another layer to the performance.

According to Page Six, Parton had approved the song for Stiles shortly before her death. "A couple weeks before Dolly passed, she approved this song, specifically for me," Stiles explained on the show. "I'm so honored to be dancing to her music and honoring her legacy. I wanna make her proud."

The connection made the dance a tribute to Parton's legacy as well as Stiles' first performance in the competition.

Stiles also spoke about what made Parton and "9 to 5" meaningful to her: "She's such a powerhouse and the song is so great," she said. "Like, it's such an anthem. What a legend."

Inaba, Hough, and Tonioli praised Stiles' performance. They complimented her grace and presence on the dance floor. Tonioli specifically praised Stiles for staying in character throughout the routine. He also complimented her acting and dancing abilities.

Despite the judges' praise, some viewers believed the pair deserved higher scores.

Even the Dolly Parton Tribute Left Viewers Questioning the Judges

Stiles and Sosa had survived the elimination, but some viewers thought an 18 did not reflect what they had just watched.

Elsewhere on social media, one netizen returned to the comparison that had followed the women throughout the evening: "they are scoring the women 10x harder than the men."

One commenter was already looking ahead, writing, "MY MIRRORBALL WINNERS!!! 🙌❤️ SLAYED!!!!"

However, one person questioned the scores directly: "Only 6's from the jury???😳 So underscored!! She deserved more points, it was SO good💗[sic]." A separate response called it "The best dance of the night, hands down, #winners."

Nader and Bills' exit came one night after Conner Leavitt and Adele Zaikman became the season's first eliminated couple, a result that also sparked debate among viewers.

One Salsa Became Their Only Dance of the Season

Leavitt and professional partner Zaikman were the first couple eliminated from Season 35, according to THR. The pair performed a salsa to Tag Team's "Whoomp! (There It Is)" and received 12 points out of 30, placing them second from the bottom among the male celebrity contestants.

Their exit came after just one competitive routine. But the result quickly became about more than their position on the scoreboard.

Viewers Questioned What Went Wrong

On Instagram, viewers offered sharply different assessments of the performance, with several turning their attention to the choreography.

One netizen criticized the dance while also arguing that Zaikman's choreography worked against her partner. "that was probably the worst first dance i've seen in a while. adele kinda did him dirty w the choreography too😁😁😁 [sic]," the user said.

Another user shared a similar view, writing, "That choreo was not made to highlight his strengths :(." A commenter believed Leavitt had more to offer than viewers got to see: "he has so much potential but I don't think the choreo did him any favors."

Someone else questioned how much salsa was actually included in the routine. "Disappointed... And I love Adele and their partnership but WHERE was the SALSA??? I mean she is a Latin dancer :/ [sic]," the viewer remarked.

Another netizen offered a much harsher assessment: "this made me genuinely horrified [sic]."

The criticism was not limited to the dance itself. Once Leavitt and Zaikman's elimination became official, other viewers focused on whether their departure was deserved.

One user was disappointed to see the couple leave after supporting them in the vote. "I voted for Connor L. and Adele!!! So sad their journey was cut short [sic]!" the user wrote.

Another commenter argued that Leavitt had been treated unfairly and pointed to voting access. "Conner got so robbed. 😢 Canada couldn't even vote!!" the person said.

Someone else agreed with that sentiment, declaring, "He was robbed!" But another viewer had the opposite reaction:"The right choice was made!"

After leaving the competition, Leavitt and Zaikman had an opportunity to give their own perspective.

Leavitt Responded to the Voting Issue

In a post-elimination interview with Entertainment Tonight's Denny Directo, Leavitt acknowledged how difficult the result was after the work he and Zaikman had put into their routine.

"I mean, I'm feeling all of them. I was upset. We felt like we were vulnerable. We left it out on the dance floor. Dancing's hard," he said.

"For anyone who doesn't know, dancing is hard. So to go out there, perform all out and then to get that kind of a disappointing result like that, it's sad, but I could not be more thrilled to be a part of such a wonderful cast and to have such a wonderful dance partner."

Zaikman, who was making her debut as a professional partner on the show, also acknowledged the disappointment.

"This experience is a dream come true. I was so happy and so blessed to be partnered with Conner. He's the best partner. I loved working with him. I do feel, of course, disappointed because I'm very competitive," she said.

At the same time, Zaikman recognized that an early exit was always possible.

"But that's what it is about. It's a competition. Someone had to go home. This is a part of the game. When you're going into this, you know that you might be the first one to go or you might be the one to win. You never know, and you need to be prepared for that."

The premiere had also been affected by an online voting glitch. Online voting was unavailable, forcing viewers to rely on text voting, while the online votes were tossed out.

Directo asked Leavitt whether he thought the problem had worked against him and Zaikman.

"You know, I'm not sure what happened, but at the end of the day, I'm a mathematician by trade. That's not my background, I don't know. So, as long as the texting was a large enough number, it should be a fair representation," Leavitt said.

Despite his disappointment, Leavitt said he did not believe the result was unfair. He felt everyone deserved their place in the competition and was simply disappointed that he and Zaikman were the first couple to leave.

Whitney Leavitt Shared a Proud Message

Leavitt's wife, Whitney Leavitt, was in the audience that night. He described her as the "love of my life" and his best friend.

According to Leavitt, Whitney quickly approached him after the result, gave him a big hug and told him she was proud of him. She acknowledged how difficult and vulnerable the experience had been and praised him for putting himself out there and giving the performance his all.

He said she also kissed him on the cheek, offering a warm conclusion to a night that had gone very differently from what he and Zaikman had hoped. With the two-night premiere complete, Season 35 moves forward after an opening that gave viewers plenty to discuss.