Xochitl Gomez and Val Chmerkovskiy were named the champions of season 32 of the Dancing With The Stars competition after competing with Ariana Madix, Charity Lawson, Jason Mraz, and Alyson Hannigan in the final.
Xochitl Gomez and Val Chmerkovskiy were awarded the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy, named after the late judge who died in April. Jason Mraz and Daniella Karagach were the runners-up.
For the first time ever, the finale featured five pairs, with Ariana Madix and Pasha Pashkov; Charity Lawson and Artem Chigvintsev; and Alyson Hannigan and Sasha Farber rounding out the finalists.
“My partnership with Val has been amazing, and he’s allowed me to be myself,” Xochitl said in a confessional. “As a 17 year old girl, I’ve been on projects where a lot of people don’t listen to what I have to say. I have been told you can’t.”
The Doctor Strange star added, “So, being here and being able to have that is really nice.”
For Val, he noted that welcoming his first child with Jenna Johnson in January has changed his outlook on life, including his DWTS career.
“Becoming a dad this off-season definitely changed everything,” the pro noted in a confessional. “There’s a sense of nurturing and a sense of protectiveness this season more than ever.”
During the episode, the stars’ loved ones sent in videos celebrating their accomplishments.
America Ferrera said in a clip to Xochitl, “You got this mama, go dance your booty off,” while Eva Longoria told her, “You are making Latinas proud everywhere.”
And as Vanderpump Rules’ Scheana Shay shared in a clip to her costar, “Ariana, I am so proud of you. Congrats on making it into the finale.”
Alyson also got some love from her How I Met Your Mother costars. “It has been a joy every week. I am so in awe of you,” Cobie Smulders said, as Josh Radnor quipped, “It makes me wish we had danced a little bit more on the set.”
Each duo performed two routines. First, they did the “redemption dance” where the competitors revisited a style they had performed earlier in the season for the chance to show their improvement and obtain higher scores from judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli.
Alyson and Sasha returned to the salsa with a number set to Gloria Estefan’s “Get on Your Feet,” and Xochitl and Val went back to the foxtrot with choreography set to Katy Perry’s “Unconditionally.” Charity and Artem also tangoed to Astor Piazzolla’s “Libertango,” Ariana and Pasha performed a samba to the Spice Girls’ “Spice Up Your Life” and Jason and Daniella did a foxtrot to Frank Sinatra’s “Fly Me to the Moon.”
Then, it was time for the freestyle with, of course, some unforgettable mashups. Alyson and Sasha rocked out to Taylor Swift’s “Enchanted” and Jennifer Lopez’s “Papi” while Ariana and Pasha grooved to Beyoncé’s “Run the World (Girls)” and Ciara’s “Level Up.” Plus, Charity and Artem danced to Destiny’s Child’s “Lose My Breath” as well as “Suéltate” by Sam i and Jarina De Marco featuring Anitta and BIA.
Some pairs decided to bust a move to a single hit song. Jason and Daniella, for example, did a routine to “Happy” by C2C featuring Derek Martin while Xochitl and Val danced to District 78’s “Que Calor.” The winning pair’s final score was 120.
Of course, hosts Alfonso Ribeiro and Julianne Hough were there to cheer them on as were former castmates.