Guillermo Rodriguez could spend an entire samba face down on the ballroom floor and still be safe on Tuesday, and I say that with love and a small amount of fear. Judging by this morning’s DWTS reactions, I am not alone. His voters have become something like a very polite flood, and nobody can find the drain.
Here is the short version. On Mariah Carey Night, Jimmy Kimmel’s sidekick and his pro partner Witney Carson scored a 13 out of 30, the lowest score of the night by a wide margin. Ciara Miller and Brandon Armstrong scored 21 and went home anyway. The internet would like to speak to a manager.
Carrie Ann Asked Where the Joy Went and the Crowd Answered
The routine was a samba to Mariah Carey’s “Obsessed,” and it included a planned moment where Guillermo simply fell to the floor. Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli teased his technique but praised his charisma, with Bruno suggesting he might be beyond critique. Then Carrie Ann Inaba asked, “Where is all your joy?” and told him he was dimming his light a little.
The studio audience booed her so loudly that the camera found children joining in, which you can see in EW’s report on Carrie Ann Inaba getting loudly booed. Her answer was “Look, this is what I get paid for, people,” which might be the most relatable sentence ever said on network television. She meant it kindly. I have never been booed by a child, but one glared at me in a Trader Joe’s in 2019, and I still think about it every week.
The scores came back 4, 4 and 5, with Bruno playing the merciful uncle. The real plot twist arrived at the end of the night, when the show eliminated Ciara Miller and Brandon Armstrong after a jazz routine to “Emotions” that tied for sixth on the leaderboard. Brandon said afterward that she was getting better every single week, which did not calm anyone down.
The Floor Bit Is Now an Official Guillermo Move
Lying down has become a signature Guillermo technique, and I respect it because it is also my Sunday technique. @xoxolmb summed up the routine with a single photo of a man face down on a white floor, and it reads like a museum installation called Week Four.
Not everyone is charmed anymore. A growing share of the DWTS reactions say the comedy bits are covering for the dancing, and the challenge to name one person he deserves to beat, posted quickly and in capital letters, got a lot of people very quiet very fast.
Ciara Fans Are Treating This DWTS Elimination Like a Court Case
Ciara’s exit stung because she looked like she was peaking. Bravo fans showed up for her, ballroom fans showed up for Brandon, and the DWTS reactions in the Reddit post-show thread turned into a grief support group with a scoreboard.
The Ezra and Maura screenshot is my favorite, because two cast members standing behind a goodbye hug looking quietly furious is the most honest footage of the night. I once cried at a baking show because a stranger’s cake leaned, so I am in no position to judge anyone’s feelings here.
Guillermo’s Voters Have Become a Weather System
Some of the funniest DWTS reactions come from the people keeping him in the competition, and they are not messing around. The best proof is still the post from @liljulsie back in September, whose mom thought she kept misspelling his name because the voting texts were not going through. She had been texting “Guillermo” to her coworker. Twenty-four times.
Guillermo started season 35 in dead last and has outlasted stronger dancers every week since. Some fans compare it to Andy Richter’s run last season, some are rooting for him out of pure spite, and one person has done the math on how long Witney might be stuck out there with him. A few viewers were too busy side-eyeing the theme night itself to pick a side at all.
So I have to ask, and please answer gently because I bruise easily: are you voting for Guillermo, against Guillermo, or accidentally texting his name to someone at work?
I will admit I watched the whole Kimmel saga last fall like it was a hostage negotiation, so 15 Jimmy Kimmel Memes: Suspension, Return, Roast is where I would send you first. Reality competition people should also try Celebrity Traitors Memes After Richard E. Grant Just Told Everyone, and 2026 VMAs Memes From A Night That Kept Getting Weirder covers the rest of my week. Vote responsibly, or at least to the right number.
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Phil M., Co‑Founder & Content Strategist
Phil is one of Thunder Dungeon’s co‑founders, doubling as our resident meme analyst and dark‑room brainstormer. He specializes in trend‑spotting across social platforms and shapes the editorial calendar to keep our galleries fresh, topical, and worthy of your valuable procrastination.
