Dylan Efron had his head in the Dancing With the Stars game for finale night — even without his brother’s presence.
As the Traitors alum and his partner, Daniella Karagach, competed in the season 34 finale of ABC’s competition show on Tuesday, November 25, Zac Efron appeared to be absent from the show’s audience in Los Angeles.
Instead, Dylan, 33, gave a casual shout-out to his brother before his final dance of the night.
“My whole life, I watched my brother perform,” he said in a pretaped package. “I never wanted to be in the spotlight, and the fact that I can step out onstage and capture people’s attention truly gives me chills. I finally feel like I belong here.”
During finale night, Dylan and Karagach, 32, performed not one but three dances in hopes of earning America’s vote.
One was an unlearned dance selected and coached by the judges, while another was an instant dance that gave the competitors only five minutes to prepare. The last was a freestyle.
Zac made his first appearance in the Dancing With the Stars ballroom when he was spotted in the audience during the semifinals on November 18.
When the cameras turned to the High School Musical actor clapping for his brother, Zac was seen sitting with their little sister, Olivia, on his lap.
“Vote for @dylanefron tonight on DWTS!” Zac wrote via his Instagram Story before the live taping came to an end. “Text ‘Dylan’ to 21523 ten times.”
After advancing into the finals with fellow competitors Jordan Chiles, Alix Earle, Elaine Hendrix and Robert Irwin, Dylan reflected on what Zac’s support symbolizes to him.
“It means everything. I grew up watching him do stuff like this,” Dylan told Entertainment Tonight on November 18, following the semifinal episode. “Looking over, my family’s there, my girlfriend. Just seeing all of them together, that’s my support.”
In a separate interview with Access Hollywood, Karagach gave fans a tease of what she was planning ahead of the finale. At the time, the professional dancer had big plans to raise the bar even higher.
“I have a really good friend helping me,” she said. “I’ve never, personally, done this style before for a freestyle, and I just feel like Dylan is the perfect person for it.”
Hours before showtime, Karagach also expressed gratitude for having Dylan as her partner for season 34.
“Thank you for trusting me with your journey,” she wrote via Instagram on Tuesday. “Lets do this one last time @dylanefron 🥹🤝 #DaDy #dwts.”
Win or lose, Dylan has certainly made a lasting impression on many viewers, including former competitor Danielle Fishel.
“You came into this knowing nothing about dance and you’re finishing as a full blown dancer,” she wrote in the comments section. “You brought a smile to my every damn day and cheering you on week after week was almost more enjoyable than dancing myself (almost! 😂). Congratulations on making it this far — I will be cheering you on with the rest of your friends and family tonight. You’ve already won in all of our eyes 😍.”
Dancing With the Stars airs on ABC and Disney+ Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET.
