DWTS Season 11 Rumor – Michael Bolton
At some point you wonder if some of these are real that the producer leak, and if some of them are NOT real that the producers leak. No, I wouldn’t put it past them to manipulate, deceive and obfuscate (and X-Files fan out there – did I get the quote right? 
).
ANYway, Radar Online says Michael Bolton is in negotiations.
Singer Michael Bolton is making a comeback – on the dance floor!
RadarOnline.com can exclusively reveal that the 57-year-old Grammy Award winner is in negotiations to join the cast of Dancing With The Stars.
“Michael’s management company had been in talks with the show for over a month,” an inside source told RadarOnline.com. “They’re all very excited about it, especially Michael.”
DWTS co-host Brooke Burke made an appearance Monday on Lopez Tonight where she denied knowing who any of the contestants are, but slyly name-dropped Bolton as a good potential for the show.
Since Brooke is so NOT sly, I have to wonder. I have to also say that Michael Bolton seems like a no-brainer casting choice – he meshes perfectly with DWTS typical demographic, the 50-something female.
I was never a fan of his music, so I guess for me the casting is probably right, but inconsequential.
I guess I put him in the “I’m surprised he hasn’t been on the show already” column. So…meh. I could see them pairing him with Edyta or Kym.
Michael Bolton? Was he the one who used to be with Nicolette Sheridan?
@Harry – Yes, he was with her twice – once in the early 90s, and again a few years back.
I actually really like Michael Bolton. Random story: back in ’02 when I was a senior in high school doing campus tours of colleges, I went on a weekend trip to the U. Wisconsin @ Madison campus and Michael happened to be in town doing a small show that weekend at some club, and was staying at our hotel. His tour bus was parked out front and there was one solitary girl standing outside of it holding flowers and a teddy bear and crying. It was kind of hilarious to me.
But hey – I don’t mind at all if Michael’s on this season…that voice. Mmmmm.
Forgive me if you’ve covered this, how do you know that the typical DWTS demographic is the 50-something female? Or put another way, how is the demographic broken down by group?
Jay, the 50-something female thing is conventional wisdom I believe, but I also read the ratings every week when the show is on the air. DWTS doesn’t do all that well in the key demographic of 18 to 34 year olds, but they do fantastically well over-all and in the older demographics. Without going back and looking it all up again, that’s the best I can do.
If I could find it easily again, I would post the article from last week that said the typical viewer for DWTS is a 60+ female.
I think if they are going with the cast of The Situation, Brandy and Audrina and 9 others, they might have a shot at raising the numbers on the younger demographic.
Thanks. On one hand, I’m not surprised that the biggest block is the 50-something females. Do you think that the producers knew this when they started and that DWTS was intended as another Murder She Wrote-type demographic show? Or is that just what evolved and then they hit pay dirt with season 10′s cast and achieved big(ger) ratings? I’m just wondering who is driving the show now. Are the producers going to throw 50-somethings under the bus?
Well, I’m not a 50-something but I know a few of them and I think you would be mistaken if you assumed that they only want to look at guys their own age.
I know a couple 50-somethings who really love Maks and Derek, for example. I think that it’s the ballroom aspect that appeals to an older demo, not necessarily a specific cast. DWTS has done pretty well at mixing it up for a few years now. Last seasons ratings were some of their highest ever, which was probably due to the Nicole and Evan fans, BUT also due to the fact that American Idol sucked pretty bad. It’s not just that DWTS was doing better, but that AI was doing Worse, if that makes sense.
OK, I’m confused. You first mentioned that Bolton meshes perfectly with the 50 year old women demographic. (If he doesn’t appear, insert another guy his age.) So I wondered if the main audience (50 year oldish women) was by accident or design and if the producers were moving away from that demographic. And then you commented that many of these women don’t want to look at guys their own age – which conflicts with your first comment but makes sense. What am I missing? Too much inside baseball, maybe.
Do you think DWTS producers have to have the 18-34 year old demographic to succeed? Does getting the younger crowd come at the expense of 50 year oldish women who may or may not like Bolton and are in it for the ballroom aspect? What does your crystal ball say about where this show is going? Ballroom or the Situation? Not sure it can have both and last very long. Thanks.
Well, it is confusing, Jay. They are trying to be all things to all people – which is what they have to do to expand their demographic. Do they NEED to expand their demographic? Well, not really. I would imagine they get more ad revenue for that coveted demographic, but I can’t imagine they aren’t already doing very well from being tied for the number one show on TV with AI. I would imagine that casting this show is a hugely complicated thing, trying to get just the right mix to appeal to as many people as possible. I don’t think they are moving away from *anyone*, just trying to expand. Courtney has a post coming up shortly about this topic actually. Might be a good time to hit “post”, Court.
As for saying Bolton meshes perfectly with the 50 year old female demographic – he does. But you shouldn’t just assume that all guys his age and popular with the ladies will satisfy all the 50 year old ladies. And you shouldn’t assume (and the producers might) that 50+ year old women ONLY like to look at men their own age. They don’t. That’s all I was saying. It’s not simple, black and white – 50 year old guys for the 50 year old ladies, and younger guys for the younger ladies. I don’t think that you can tell in advance who is going to be popular (or a good dancer) on this show because people are all very different. I think they got their older skewing demographic because it’s ballroom dancing, and some of that older demographic have been swooning over Bolton (and Hasselhoff, and O’Neal) for YEARS. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t also people in that age group swooning over Derek, Maks or any of the other pros.
As for having both – well, it’s always had both, really, in one degree or another. Kim Kardashian was nothing but famous for being famous when she was on, AFAIK. We’ve had a Bachelor and a Bachelorette – and the ratings were high (because older women watch that show too)…I don’t really think that Mike really adds a “new” type to the program. Particularly if he dances as well as Kim K does.
A lot of people were scandalized when they put Lil’ Kim on – and with Derek of all people – but that turned out great. Every season there are one or two people who cause some to say “You’re dead to me, DWTS.”
Call me crazy but I just don’t think they would cast Bolton AND Hasselhof for the same season.
I don’t think so either, Andie – it just doesn’t normally work that way. One of them is false. Probably Bolton.
@Andie & Heidi – They don’t have enough room for the chest hair of both Bolton & Hasselhoff
I’d rather have the Bolt than the Hoff…although the latter seems like more of a possibility just out of sheer campiness. Cheeseburgers, anyone? 
Ok, bad taste…I’m done.
@Courtney I agree with you, and the cheeseburgers will be aplenty this season. At the Hasselhoff roast dwts alumni Pam Anderson and Jeffery Ross were part of the procedings so yeah, makes sense for him to be cast this season.