"True star!"— Dancing with the Stars fans praise Stephen Nedoroscik and Rylee Arnold's finale freestyle performance

Dancing with the Stars season 33 aired its three-hour-long finale on ABC on November 26, 2024. The episode commenced at 8 pm ET and saw the finalists take to the stage one last time.

The five pairs, who were in the race to win the trophy, performed twice. The first dance performance was the "redemption dance," assigned by the judges. Their final DWTS performance was a freestyle routine. For Stephen and Rylee, they performed a Quickstep to I'll Be There For You and a Freestyle to Viva La Vida.

Their freestyle dance routine earned praise by the judges and they received a perfect score. Fans online also appreciated the contestant and his professional dancing partner. One person wrote on X:

"A perfect 30 and a PERFECT ending to Stephen and Rylee’s journey. A dance that truly embodied the journey that got Steve to this moment, and throughout that journey, he’s stayed true to himself. We know he’s got skills AND moves! A true star!"

"BREAKING. stephen and rylee’s freestyle just received a 55 minute standing ovation from me in my living room," a fan commented.

"I LOVED THAT! rylee’s first freestyle was AMAZING and stephen did great. the moment when the spotlight was just on him and his teammates, omg," a tweet read.

Fans of Dancing with the Stars season 33 called the pair "True winners":

"Ok this is my take. I think Stephen had the most emotional freestyle and Chandler had technically and stylistically the best. The mirrorball is hers, but if there was a miss congeniality for the freestyle it’s Stephen’s. Both are true winners," a person wrote.

"This dance between Stephen and Rylee made me genuinely tear up. This is one of the most powerful and emotional dances I’ve ever seen. The fact he was surrounded by his teammates makes it even more incredible," a fan commented.

"A lot of you don’t know this but so many men’s college gymnastics programs are being dismantled and stephen is introducing a whole new audience and generation to MAG. i’m crying my eyes out, he is doing wonders for the sport," a tweet read.

Fans of Dancing with the Stars season 33 further said:

"Stephen and Rylee's dance was artistic and it moved me so much. That's the freestyle that everyone is competing against and I don't feel that Jenna & Joey's matched up to that," a person wrote.

"ohmyghad! them on the beam together this was sooooo good!! Stephen, I'm speechless! Deserved 30s," a fan commented.

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Stephen and Rylee earn the perfect score for their Freestyle dance routine in Dancing with the Stars season 33 finale

In Dancing with the Stars season 33 finale, Stephen Nedoroscik and Rylee Arnold performed the Quickstep and a freestyle dance routine. Ahead of their freestyle routine, a clip of their rehearsal was placed. The Olympian Stephen appreciated his and Rylee's partnership and said he was grateful to have been paired with her.

"You gave me so much confidence," Stephen said

For their Viva La Vida act, Stephen's "gymnastics buddies" as per People Magazine, joined the duo on stage. The Dancing with the Stars season 33 finalist said he was"ready to put it all out there" and that he would "throw up" if he had to win the mirrorball trophy.

The judges were impressed with their performance. Derek Hough recalled seeing Stephen on TV and thinking he would be great on DWTS.

"And here you are in the finale with that incredible freestyle. I'm gonna get emotional. I loved it," the judge said.

Fans of Dancing with the Stars season 33 commented on Stephen's performance and showered praises on him and Rylee online.

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Episodes of Dancing with the Stars season 33 are available to stream on ABC.