Dancing with the Stars pro Witney Carson is returning to the ballroom for season 35 and has a new partner to tango with.
The two-time Mirrorball champion revealed Monday on Good Morning America that she’ll be hitting the dance floor with none other than longtime Jimmy Kimmel Live! personality Guillermo Rodriguez this season.
“I was so stoked,” Carson said when she learned she and Rodriguez would be teaming up. “I think he is so sweet. He’s so fun. That’s exactly what I need in this season of life that I’m in, just someone who’s fun, personable.”
Carson is also appearing in a new episode of Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro airing Monday night. She said she “was genuinely impressed” by all of the contestants vying for a pro spot on season 35 alongside her.
“This specific challenge was really telling,” Carson said. “It was exactly laid out like Dancing with the Stars, so they had to teach a novice, beginner dancer, how to do a routine in four days.”
Carson will also share the dance floor with another new partner this season. She revealed she is pregnant with her third child.
“I am expecting, so I will be dancing with this little baby right here,” Carson said. “Very excited, but I would be lying if I said it wasn’t very daunting. I’ve never been this far along, pregnant, and competing on Dancing with the Stars before.”
The professional dancer, who already shares two sons with husband Carson McAllister, said she’s excited to show people she can take on the challenge.
“Someone the other day was like, ‘You can just hide it with some fringe and rhinestones,’ and I was just thinking, ‘I don’t want to hide it,'” the mom of two said. “I’m so proud to be a woman, to be creating life, and growing this human, and to be able to do the show and compete and be able to grow this life is such a huge blessing.”
As for the upcoming season, Carson said she’s not sure how it will unfold but remains excited for whatever happens.
“It wasn’t on my bingo card to compete on Dancing with the Stars and be four months pregnant, but I think that it’s a beautiful thing, and I think I’m really excited,” she said.
“This show is so beautiful, and I think why people keep coming back to watch it is because it’s so joyous,” she added. “We really support each other and the camaraderie and the positivity that it brings to people, and I think people are just drawn to that energy. It’s a little escape for people. And I’m very grateful to be a part of a show that promotes that.”
