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Jimmy Kimmel reacted to Guillermo Rodriguez and Witney Carson’s elimination from Dancing with the Stars by questioning the voting outcome and criticizing the judges’ scores. He cited a YouTube-view comparison and spoke with the pair backstage, but the figures do not establish how viewers voted.
Jimmy Kimmel criticized Guillermo Rodriguez’s elimination from Dancing with the Stars after the show’s Tuesday night Super Bowl-themed episode, arguing on Jimmy Kimmel Live that the performer had drawn strong online attention and earned his highest score yet. Rodriguez and his professional partner, Witney Carson, left the competition at the end of Week 5, despite Kimmel’s public support and a YouTube-view comparison he presented on air.
Kimmel said Rodriguez and Carson had been a popular pairing and showed figures he described as YouTube views from the previous week: 719,000 for Rodriguez and Carson, compared with 231,000 for Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson, whom he called the next-closest couple. Those counts show a difference in views, but they do not establish how many people voted for either pair or how the program’s voting was distributed.
During the episode, Rodriguez and Carson performed a salsa to Bad Bunny under the Super Bowl theme. The judges gave them 22 out of 40: Carrie Ann Inaba and Joe Buck each awarded 6, while Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli each awarded 5. Kimmel called it Rodriguez’s highest score so far and said he had again landed in the bottom two before viewers’ votes failed to keep him in the contest.
Kimmel also played clips of news programs in the United States and Canada cheering for Rodriguez. After the elimination, he spoke live with the pair backstage, where Rodriguez’s DWTS experience had just ended. Asked whether they would accept the result or take legal action, Rodriguez replied that they should take legal action, and Carson agreed. The exchange was presented as banter; there is no indication that either plans to pursue a legal challenge.
DWTS • Week Five Exit • October 2026
What Jimmy Kimmel Said About Voters After Guillermo Left ‘DWTS’
After Guillermo Rodriguez and Witney Carson were eliminated, Kimmel questioned the result on air—pointing to a YouTube-view comparison and Rodriguez’s best judges’ score yet. Neither figure reveals how viewers voted.
01 / The numbers on air
Two different measures
Kimmel used online views to illustrate the pair’s apparent popularity, then noted their judges’ score. Views and scores describe different things; neither gives the audience vote count.
Rodriguez & Carson
Kimmel called 22 Rodriguez’s highest score so far. The improved score did not keep the pair in the competition.
The comparison Kimmel showed
02 / What the figures can’t tell us
Attention is not a ballot
The reported details leave the voting mechanics and final breakdown unknown. Kimmel’s criticism and the on-air comparison do not establish a problem with the result.
Repeat plays may count
A view count does not tell us how many distinct people watched or whether they voted.
No ballot breakdown
The segment did not provide vote totals, voter participation, or the margin between couples.
No irregularity reported
The available account does not establish unfairness or a voting irregularity. The legal-action exchange was presented as banter.
03 / How the story unfolded
From salsa to backstage banter
Super Bowl theme
The pair danced a salsa to a Bad Bunny song.
Judges award 22
Kimmel described it as Rodriguez’s highest score to date.
Elimination
Rodriguez and Carson left the show at the end of Week Five.
Kimmel reacts
He questioned the outcome, then spoke with them backstage.
“I think we should take legal action.”
Guillermo Rodriguez • Backstage exchange
“But Jimmy, now we don’t have this weird custody battle. You can have him now.”
Witney Carson • Backstage exchange
04 / The next episode
Dedication Night follows
The reported schedule points to the next theme, while further official details about the vote and scoring breakdown were not included in Kimmel’s segment.
Next scheduled theme: Dedication Night
Dancing with the Stars airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and Disney+. Episodes stream on Hulu the following day.
Online Attention Versus the Vote
The elimination highlights a gap between visible online enthusiasm and the outcome of a televised competition. A high view count can draw attention to a contestant, but it is not a measure of votes: views may include repeat plays, and the figures Kimmel displayed do not reveal the voting totals, voter participation or how scores and votes combined in this week’s result.
Kimmel’s reaction also reflects the entertainment value of a host publicly backing a colleague. His jokes made the elimination a second conversation beyond the competition itself, while his comparison gave viewers a reason to ask why apparent online popularity did not keep Rodriguez in. The available details do not show that the voting process was unfair or that the result was affected by any irregularity.
Dancing with the Stars professional dance shoes
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Rodriguez’s Week Five Run
Rodriguez, known to viewers of Jimmy Kimmel Live, competed with Carson through the first five weeks of the season. Kimmel had supported the pair during their run, and the segment after their departure continued that support with a mix of criticism, jokes and praise for Carson’s choreography.
The episode’s theme was the Super Bowl, and Rodriguez and Carson danced a salsa to a Bad Bunny song. Their 22-point judges’ total was higher than their previous score, according to Kimmel’s account, but the improvement did not keep them from elimination. The program’s next scheduled theme was Dedication Night. Dancing with the Stars airs Tuesday at 8 p.m. Eastern and Pacific on ABC and Disney+, with episodes available on Hulu the following day.
“Last week, Guillermo and Witney had more than triple the YouTube views of their closest opponent.”
— Jimmy Kimmel, on Jimmy Kimmel Live
What the View Counts Cannot Show
The figures Kimmel displayed do not show the number of votes cast, the voting margin between couples or the rules used to combine viewer votes with judges’ scores. The available account also does not provide a complete breakdown of the week’s results or an official explanation for Rodriguez and Carson’s placement.
It is also unclear whether the YouTube figures covered the same time period and viewing conditions for each couple beyond Kimmel’s description of them as last week’s views. His criticism and the pair’s legal-action exchange were part of a comedy segment, not evidence that the results are being challenged. No substantiated allegation of voting irregularities is reported.
Dedication Night Follows
The competition is scheduled to continue with Dedication Night in the next episode. Dancing with the Stars airs Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and Disney+, and episodes stream on Hulu the following day. Rodriguez and Carson’s elimination ends their participation in the season unless the show announces a change; no such change is described in the available account.
Further official details about the vote totals or the scoring-and-voting breakdown were not included in Kimmel’s segment as reported. Until the program releases additional information, the YouTube comparison remains an indicator of online views, not an explanation of why viewers’ votes produced this result.
Source: Yahoo Entertainment
Key Questions
Why did Jimmy Kimmel criticize Guillermo Rodriguez’s elimination?
Kimmel said Rodriguez and Carson had received far more YouTube views than the next-closest couple in the comparison he showed, and pointed out that Rodriguez had earned his highest judges’ score yet. He questioned why those points and apparent online interest did not keep them in the competition.
What score did Guillermo Rodriguez and Witney Carson receive?
The judges gave the pair 22 out of 40 for their Super Bowl-themed salsa. Carrie Ann Inaba and Joe Buck gave them 6 each, while Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli gave them 5 each.
Do the YouTube views show how viewers voted?
No. Kimmel cited 719,000 views for Rodriguez and Carson and 231,000 for Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson, but those figures are not vote totals and do not reveal the voting margin or the combined results.
Are Rodriguez and Carson taking legal action?
There is no indication that they are. Rodriguez and Carson agreed when Kimmel jokingly asked about legal action, but the exchange was presented as banter during a backstage conversation.
What is the next Dancing with the Stars theme?
The next scheduled episode is Dedication Night. The show airs Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and Disney+, with streaming on Hulu the following day.
Source: Yahoo Entertainment
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