Tom Bergeron Gets Surprise Honorary Mirrorball 5 Years After DWTS Exit

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Tom Bergeron has, in a sense, waltzed away with Dancing With the Stars’ top prize.

Oh my gosh, you will NOT believe this! Our beloved former host – the one who led us through FIFTEEN amazing years of sparkle and competition before he left so suddenly in 2020 – just told me the sweetest story! Apparently, the incredible James Yarnell, the genius behind all the show’s stunning designs, gave him an honorary Mirrorball Trophy! Can you even imagine?! It’s like, a symbol of everything, and the fact that James thought of him… I’m officially deceased!

On April 2nd, Tom Bergeron shared that he recently enjoyed returning for the 20th anniversary of Dancing with the Stars. He posted a video revealing a special gift he received at lunch from the show’s Emmy-winning Production Designer, J.R. Yarnell.

In a video sharing a heartwarming moment, the TV personality revealed a large black box decorated with the Dancing with the Stars logo. He explained that he and Yarnell had been friends for decades, ever since they first worked together on Hollywood Squares in the late 1990s.

He arrived carrying a box and asked, ‘What do you think is inside?’ It was a surprising moment, and he seemed to be waiting for a reaction.

The longtime host confessed he was surprised by the show’s big prize, initially thinking Yarnell had just gotten him a small gift from the set. He joked that he’d expected something like a portable bronzer belonging to Bruno Tonioli, or maybe Carrie Ann Inaba’s smelling salts.

Bergeron explained, showing off a special golden Mirrorball Trophy with his name on it. “All I had to do was dance one time, back in 2006,” he said.

 

The gift felt particularly meaningful for Bergeron, as he’d hosted the show for its first 28 seasons. However, his relationship with the production became difficult after he was let go in 2020. He even told Cheryl Burke in a 2023 podcast interview that he wouldn’t return, explaining that the show had changed too much.

He did eventually come back for the show’s 20th anniversary episode last November. Before that appearance, he explained his difficult departure, telling The Hollywood Reporter that he didn’t get along with the showrunner who was in charge during his last season. Bergeron said the showrunner knew he disliked being misled, and that he was, in fact, lied to.

His real journey toward feeling better about the show didn’t start until Conrad Green, the original creator of Dancing With the Stars, persuaded him to return.

Bergeron told Good Morning America that Green had made a friendly gesture, prompting him to think back on their happy memories together.

Read on to learn more secrets from the beloved dance competition…

In 2019, Variety reported that celebrities appearing on Dancing With the Stars initially earn $125,000 for rehearsals and the first two weeks of the show. According to sources, contestants who advance further receive additional payments each week, potentially earning up to $295,000 total.

However, Bobby Bones said he made more than this when he won season 27 with Sharna Burgess in 2018.

The radio host mentioned on Jason Tartick’s podcast, Trading Secrets, in September 2025 that the show’s pay structure was unusual. They explained they weren’t paid for the first episode, then earned $10,000 for the second. The pay then increased, going from $10,000 to $20,000 per episode, and eventually reaching $50,000 per episode for those who continued with the show.

Okay, so he gets a salary of about $110,000 just for being on the show, which is amazing, but then he said – and I almost fainted when I heard this – he actually made nearly $400,000 total from it! Can you believe it? It’s just… incredible. I knew he was talented, but wow!

ABC has not publicly confirmed any of these figures.

Details about professional dancers’ earnings haven’t been widely released either. However, like the contestants, it appears they earn more the further they advance on the show.

But even if a pro is eliminated in the first round, they’re not leaving the ballroom empty-handed.

Jenna Johnson explained on the June 2025 episode of the The Morning After podcast, hosted by Kelly Stafford and Hank Winchester, that there’s a guarantee for a limited number of weeks, but contracts can vary. She added that she couldn’t comment on the specifics of other people’s agreements.

Apparently not.

Cheryl Johnson, who has won two seasons of Dancing with the Stars – once with Olympic skater Adam Rippon and again with Joey Graziadei from The Bachelor – explains that professional dancers don’t earn extra money for winning the show’s trophy, now named after the late Len Goodman. However, she points out there are still benefits to reaching the final rounds, beyond just the prestige of winning.

She explained on The Morning After that reaching the finale means you get paid for the entire season, plus a bonus. However, winning isn’t about a large cash prize – it’s just a shared trophy with your teammate.

That doesn’t appear to be the case.

In a 2022 appearance on Trading Secrets, Lindsay Arnold shared that her pay was reduced by more than 50% after she moved from being a professional dancer to a troupe member.

The pros get little input when it comes to being matched with a celebrity.

On the May 2025 episode of Maggie Sellers’ podcast, Hot Smart Rich, Lindsay explained that participants had no choice in who they were paired with. She said it was simply, ‘Here’s your partner. Make it work.’

In fact, Jenna said the pairing is often a secret until the last minute.

Jenna explained on The Morning After that the show’s producers are dedicated to keeping the cast a secret until the live reveal. People often assume the hosts know who’s participating, but that’s not true – the producers don’t even tell them! They prefer to keep the cast list completely under wraps to capture the genuine surprise and reaction when the contestants finally meet their partners. It sometimes leaks, but they strive for total secrecy.

As for what the Dancing With the Stars team looks for when making these matches?

According to former showrunner Rob Wade, the show’s pairings weren’t random. In a 2015 interview with TopMob News, he explained they considered height, body type, personality, and how well contestants would get along. They specifically avoided matching people who they thought wouldn’t connect, as the experience was already stressful enough. Unlike shows like The Bachelor, forcing a bad match would create a negative experience for everyone involved – the celebrity, the production team, and the audience. He admitted they had previously made this mistake, pairing contestants who simply didn’t click.

Dancing With the Stars requires a huge time commitment. Rylee Arnold, who partnered with Stephen Nedoroscik in season 33, explained on the Lightweights Podcast With Joe Vulpis that rehearsals are four hours long and happen either from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., or 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. The work doesn’t end with rehearsal, though; Rylee often meets with producers, works on choreography, or studies dance videos. She says her entire life revolves around the show, but she loves it and is passionate about it. It’s a demanding schedule with no days off – rehearsals run from Wednesday to Sunday after show day on Tuesday, and Mondays are dedicated to camera blocking before another show day on Tuesday.

Emma Slater and Britt Stewart shared in an Instagram video in September 2025 that they are mostly on board, but it’s a project they’re working on together with the show’s producers.

If you think the quickstep dance is fast-paced, you should see how quickly the costume department works! Costume designer Daniela Gschwendtner explained to TV Insider that they collaborate with set, lighting, and dance teams to create a unique story for each dancer’s outfit. Then, they have just five days – often only half a day per costume, before even adding rhinestones – to make everything. The department employs around 20 people, plus an external tailor shop, making it a large operation.

Steven Norman Lee, another costume designer, revealed that dancers often don’t try on their costumes until just hours before the show. While they might occasionally re-use pants for male dancers, most costumes are made from scratch each week.

Gschwendtner added that while they sometimes re-use items for group performances or promotional shoots, they avoid doing so for the competition itself. The goal is to keep everything fresh and new each week to maintain visual interest for the audience.

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2026-04-03 19:52