After years of stealing scenes on late-night television, Guillermo Rodríguez is getting ready for a very different spotlight.
The beloved sidekick from Jimmy Kimmel Live! has officially joined Season 35 of Dancing With the Stars, making him one of the first celebrities confirmed for the upcoming season of the ABC competition. Guillermo announced the news during Wednesday night's episode of the late-night show, surprising both the audience and fans who have followed his unlikely rise from parking lot security guard to television personality.
For Latino audiences, Guillermo's casting is particularly notable. Born in Mexico on January 27, 1971, Rodríguez immigrated to the United States and was working as a security guard at the Hollywood studio where Jimmy Kimmel Live! is filmed when producers first discovered his natural comedic talent. Over the past two decades, he has become one of the show's most recognizable faces, famous for celebrity interviews, red carpet appearances, and his deadpan humor alongside host Jimmy Kimmel.
Now 55, Guillermo will swap celebrity interviews for ballroom rehearsals.
"Guillermo is the kind of contestant people immediately root for," entertainment observers noted after the announcement, pointing to his everyman appeal and the devoted fan base he has built through years of memorable appearances at the Oscars, the Emmys and countless comedy segments.
He joins a growing Season 35 lineup that already includes The Traitors finalist Maura Higgins, Summer House star Ciara Miller and Savannah Bananas player Jackson Olson. The full cast and professional dance pairings are expected to be revealed on Good Morning America on Sept. 2.
The upcoming season arrives after one of the most successful years in the franchise's recent history. Season 34 drew its largest audience in a decade and generated hundreds of millions of fan votes, helping cement the show's renewed popularity.
Whether Guillermo can dance remains an open question. But if his years of comic timing, self-deprecating humor and willingness to throw himself into any challenge are any indication, he may already have the most important ingredient for Dancing With the Stars: the ability to win over an audience.
And if history is any guide, Guillermo's greatest talent has never been dancing. It's making people smile.
