Maura Higgins is heading to the ballroom, and that single casting update has already given Dancing With the Stars Season 35 an early burst of attention. The Irish reality star has been confirmed as one of the first celebrity contestants for the upcoming season, with Summer House cast member Ciara Miller also joining the initial lineup. The announcement arrived during Disney and Hulu’s “Get Real House” event on April 22, instantly putting the next season of the long-running dance competition back into the entertainment conversation.

For ABC, this is the kind of early reveal that works on multiple levels. It brings in viewers from different reality-TV fandoms, creates momentum months before the season premiere, and gives the new cast rollout a headline people are likely to click. For fans, it raises a more interesting question: what kind of contestant will Maura Higgins actually be once the sequins, rehearsals and weekly scores take over?

That is where the story becomes more compelling than a simple casting note. Higgins is not arriving as a random famous name added for buzz. She comes into DWTS after several years of staying visible across reality television, entertainment coverage and red-carpet hosting work. She first became a breakout figure on Love Island UK, where her confidence and quick delivery made her one of the most talked-about personalities from the franchise. More recently, she reached a broader American audience through The Traitors, where she made it all the way to the final and finished second in season 4. That matters because Dancing With the Stars has increasingly become a show where personality, audience connection and week-to-week narrative matter almost as much as technical skill.

Why Maura Higgins Fits the Current DWTS Era

The modern version of Dancing With the Stars is no longer built only around actors, athletes and legacy network personalities. It now thrives on casting choices that feel active in the culture. Higgins fits that model well. She has name recognition, a strong online following and a public image that feels current rather than nostalgic. She also brings the kind of unpredictability that reality competition shows need. Viewers do not yet know whether she will emerge as a polished performer, an emotional underdog or one of the season’s most entertaining personalities. That uncertainty gives people a reason to tune in from week one.

Ciara Miller’s casting strengthens that same strategy. Miller has built her own audience through Bravo’s Summer House, which is now in its 10th season, and she has stayed in entertainment headlines through her off-screen friendships, public relationships and recent media appearances. Both women also share another detail that makes this rollout feel deliberate: they have appeared on The Traitors, with Miller having featured in season 3 and Higgins finishing runner-up in season 4. That overlap gives the season an added layer of crossover appeal, especially for viewers who move easily between Bravo, Peacock, Hulu and ABC reality programming.

The network’s timing also makes sense. Season 34 was a major success for the franchise, with reports noting that the finale alone generated 72 million votes and that nearly half a billion votes were cast across the season as a whole. Those are the kind of numbers that show DWTS is still more than a familiar legacy title. It remains a live-viewing event with a deeply engaged fan base, and that fan base tends to reward contestants who are easy to root for, easy to discuss and capable of surprising people. Higgins enters with all three possibilities in play.

She has also shown a willingness to lean into public-facing entertainment roles beyond straight reality competition. Both Higgins and Miller have spent time working as red-carpet correspondents, which gives them a level of camera ease that often helps on a show like Dancing With the Stars. Higgins has covered major entertainment events, while Miller has also taken on high-visibility media assignments. That comfort in front of live or semi-live audiences may not replace dance training, but it can help when the pressure of performance becomes part of the story.

Season 35 Is Already Building a Bigger Story

The Higgins announcement did not arrive in isolation. Disney also used the same event to confirm a broader expansion of the Dancing With the Stars universe. A new spinoff series, Dancing With the Stars: The Next Pro, is set to premiere on July 13 on ABC, with episodes streaming the next day on Hulu. The show will follow 12 up-and-coming dancers living together and competing in an audition-style process for a coveted spot as a pro dancer on Season 35. Robert Irwin, who won the Mirrorball Trophy in Season 34 with Witney Carson, has been named host. Mark Ballas and Shirley Ballas will serve as judges, with additional guest judges and mentors rotating through the series.

That matters because it shows the franchise is not just returning for another season. It is trying to grow its identity as an entertainment brand with multiple entry points for fans. Higgins becomes part of that larger push at exactly the right time. Her casting helps launch early conversation around the main show while the spinoff builds summer interest around the professional side of the competition.

There is also the simple fact that Higgins feels like a contestant viewers will want to evaluate for themselves rather than ignore. Some casting announcements land with polite curiosity and disappear. This one has already created discussion because it brings together celebrity culture, reality-TV momentum and the possibility of reinvention. Dancing With the Stars has always been strongest when it gives viewers a reason to see someone differently by the end of the season than they did at the start. Higgins now has that opening.

The full celebrity cast and pro dancer lineup will be announced later, with Season 35 expected to premiere this fall on ABC and Disney+, while episodes will stream the next day on Hulu. For official franchise updates, viewers can follow the ABC Dancing With the Stars page.

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