Dancing with the Stars has announced Alfonso Ribeiro will co-host Season 31 alongside Tyra Banks, and the four judges have also been revealed.

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When Dancing with the Stars streams on Disney+ for the first time ever this Fall, the show will feature Tyra continuing her role as host and executive producer for the third straight season.

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And Alfonso, champion of Dancing with the Stars' nineteenth season and the current host of America's Funniest Home Videos, will be joining Tyra as the show's new co-host.

"Dancing with the Stars has been such an important part of my life for so many years, and I am ecstatic to officially re-join this tight-knit family as co-host," Alfonso said in a statement.

"Tyra and I have a longstanding friendship that I hope will resonate with all of the fans at home as we kick off this new season on Disney+."

And Tyra shared how she's known the actor -- who's also fondly known for his former comedic role as Carlton on The Fresh Prince of Bel Air -- since she was 19 years old.

"He always puts a smile on my face whenever I see him," Tyra shared of her new co-host.

"Having such a fun-loving, longtime friend as co-host warms my heart. Plus, he's won the competition before, so he knows exactly what the stars are going through. Bantering back and forth with him live is going to be so much fun!"

After Alfonso won Dancing with the Stars 19, he also hosted the countrywide tour that season.

In addition, Dancing with the Stars has announced veteran judges Len Goodman, Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli and Derek Hough will be sitting on the judging panel next season.

Derek previously confirmed his Dancing with the Stars participation in May.

"I will be back!" Derek told Entertainment Tonight at the time. "I will be back, yeah."
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The premiere date for Dancing with the Stars' 31st season will be announced at a later date.

Dancing with the Stars is moving to Disney+ after airing on ABC for a whopping 30 seasons.

Dancing with the Stars will be the first live series to debut on the streaming service, and Season 32 has also been picked up on Disney+.

"Dancing with the Stars has always been a trailblazer," Derek told ET. "They've always been the first to do things."

Dancing with the Stars premiered in 2005 on ABC, but Walt Disney Television executive Dana Walden said the popular show leaving its original network supports ABC's initiative to "significantly" expand its unscripted slate.

Dana also said in an April statement this will be a great opportunity to introduce Dancing with the Stars "to a whole new generation of fans on Disney+."

ABC announced in July 2020 that Tyra, the former America's Got Talent and America's Next Top Model host, would be joining Dancing with the Stars as its new host and executive producer because the show planned to embark on "a new creative direction."

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Tyra replaced longtime host Tom Bergeron and his co-host Erin Andrews, who only held the position for six seasons.

Many fans were especially disappointed to see Tom go considering he had served as the host of Dancing with the Stars since the series premiered on ABC in 2005 -- a span that covered 28 seasons and over 400 episodes.

Tyra has also been subjected to backlash for flubbing her lines and altering the show's format since joining the reality dancing competition.

"I don't read it," Tyra told Extra of criticism in October 2020, when Dancing with the Stars' 29th season was airing. "But they show me the ratings and I'm [confused]. I think a lot of it honestly is just people don't like change."

Tyra claimed it was "unprecedented how many more people" were tuning into the show once she became host.

"I know the network is happy because the network [is full of] business people that chose me," Tyra insisted at the time.

She vented that some people are just "unhappy" and can be "nasty," adding, "And so, why am I going to look at that crap?! I've just got to keep going."

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When Derek served as a pro partner on Dancing with the Stars, he was crowned champion and won the mirrorball trophy a whopping six times. He also sat on the judging panel for Seasons 29 and 30.

Dancing with the Stars' 30th season concluded with NBA champion Iman Shumpert and his professional partner Daniella Karagach winning the mirrorball trophy over the runner-up couple JoJo Siwa and pro partner Jenna Johnson.


About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.