Season 34 of “Dancing with the Stars” came to its conclusion last week. Wildlife conservationist Robert Irwin and his professional partner Witney Carson victoriously walked away with the prestigious Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy after an entertaining finale.
However, that wasn’t the end of what the show had to offer in 2025. On Tuesday, December 2, “Dancing with the Stars” returned for a festive special titled “Dancing with the Holidays.”
Serving up some holiday magic with the DWTS professional dancers, former contestants, and a few special guests, “Dancing with the Holidays” really kicked the festive season off with a bang — and Derek Hough’s entertainment show “Extra” has served up some behind-the-scenes footage.
Jen Affleck Went Backstage on the ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Holiday Special
The behind-the-scenes footage came in the form of a 107-second video on “Extra’s” official Instagram account, which was shared with the show’s 1 million followers.
It was captioned, “‘Tis the season for dancing! Jen Affleck takes us exclusively behind the scenes of the #DWTS holiday special! 🪩🎄”
Affleck — a cast member of “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” — was, of course, a participant on the recently finished season of DWTS. Partnering with Jan Ravnik, she was the sixth contestant eliminated on October 28.
She headed backstage to speak to the likes of fellow season 34 contestant actor and comedian Andy Richter. Richter, who was the eighth contestant eliminated on November 11, took part in the holiday special to dance alongside his professional partner Emma Slater and her former celebrity partner, Reginald VelJohnson.
Richter described the experience as “just a really fun day” and explained to Affleck that it was far less nerve-racking than the actual show. He said, “Oh, this is easy because no one’s judging. You know, outside of just home viewers judging us. But there’s no points attached.”
Affleck also spoke to her own professional partner, Jan Ravnik, suggesting he was “having a blast” on the holiday special. He replied, “Yeah, so much blast!”
Other individuals Affleck caught up with included professional dancers Ezra Sosa and the aforementioned Emma Slater.
The video featured lots of additional fun footage, too. It ended the the cast of the festive special collectively shouting “HAPPY HOLIDAYS!”
You’ll have to watch the whole thing to see what else it shows.
Fans ‘Love’ the Idea of the Behind-the-Scenes Look
“Dancing with the Stars” fans seemed to enjoy the behind-the-scenes look at the “Dancing with the Holidays” festive special.
One commented on the video saying, “Love this idea!”
Lots of people seemed to love Jan Ravnik’s input on the video, with one writing, “So much blast.” I’m gonna use that.”
Another fan said, “Jan’s so iconic 👏” and someone else said, “Jan I can’t 😭💀.”
The behind-the-scenes sneak peak made one “Dancing with the Stars” viewer excited to see the holiday episode, as they wrote, “Awww I can’t wait to watch it 💃🕺.”
The “Dancing with the Stars” holiday special was hosted by Julianne Hough and Alfonso Ribeiro. In addition to the full roster of current DWTS professionals and former pro Maksim Chmerkovskiy, other former contestants who appeared included Scott Hoying, Hannah Brown, and Rashad Jennings. There was also a performance from a cappella group Pentatonix.
Jenna Johnson and Val Chmerkovskiy’s almost three-year-old son Rome made an appearance, as did Ribeiro’s wife Angela Unkrich and their three kids, AJ, 12, Anders, 10, Ava, 6. It all added to the wholesome nature of the special.
There were multiple great choreographed performances, including four reprise performances from series past.
“Dancing with the Holidays” is now available to stream on Disney+ and Hulu, and we strongly recommend you watch it — especially if you’re looking to get into the Christmas spirit.
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