DWTS Prince Night Ends With a Surprise Elimination That Shakes Up the Finale

Prince Night on Dancing With the Stars was supposed to be shiny, purple, and fun. It was. And then the semi-finals ended with one of those gut-punch eliminations that gets the whole ballroom booing at their TVs.

So, who went home?

Whitney Leavitt was eliminated alongside her pro partner, Mark Ballas. Yep, even after the kind of night that usually locks you for the finale, they were the ones heading out. That takes a legit contender off the board; Leavitt, who you might know from The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, had been in the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy conversation all season. Fans were not thrilled.

How Prince Night worked (and why this one stung)

The semi-finals ran a tighter format: every couple had to dance twice, both to Prince tracks. One routine had to be a style they had already done earlier in the season, and the other had to be brand-new.

For their repeat, Leavitt and Ballas brought a cha cha to 1999. Then they switched gears with a Viennese waltz to Slow Love. Both routines pulled 29 out of 30 from the judges. In other words: near-perfect. The problem? Everybody else was racking up big numbers too, so when the leaderboard and eliminations shook out at the end of the night, their scores were not enough to carry them through. It was the kind of surprise exit that makes you double-check you heard the host right.

What they said on the way out

'I already feel like a winner. This show has meant the absolute world for me... I will forever be grateful for the friendships I made. Thank you so so much.'

'I had the best time. I love this show.'

Who is dancing in the finale on November 25, 2025

• Elaine Hendrix and Alan Bersten
• Alix Earle and Val Chmerkovskiy
• Jordan Chiles and Ezra Sosa
• Robert Irwin and Witney Carson
• Dylan Efron and Daniella Karagach

Five couples left, one Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy up for grabs, and a finale date set. Buckle up.