Key Takeaways
- Kayla Nicole is reportedly in “serious consideration” for Season 36 of Dancing with the Stars, a move sources call the next natural step in her media and reality TV career.
- The opportunity follows a wave of online ridicule after she publicly campaigned to join the show in 2025, even as she’s built credibility by winning Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test and leaning into more unscripted projects.
- The renewed interest in Nicole, who has also joked about leading The Bachelorette, comes weeks after her ex Travis Kelce married Taylor Swift.
Kayla Nicole's ballroom dream may be closer than ever to becoming reality. Just months after being ridiculed online by Taylor Swift fans for saying she wanted to compete on Dancing with the Stars, a new report claims the media personality is now in "serious consideration" for a future season of the long-running ABC competition.
According to Page Six, the model and podcaster is eager to join Dancing with the Stars, with a source calling it "the next natural step in her career." The report says Nicole had an opportunity to connect with longtime pro Witney Carson while attending the inaugural TIME100 Sports Gala in New York City on July 16. Although Season 35's lineup is already locked ahead of its September premiere, the outlet reports Nicole is being eyed for Season 36.
The update marks a dramatic turnaround from the reaction Nicole received after openly campaigning for the show last year. During an appearance on Harry Jowsey's Boyfriend Material podcast, she didn't hesitate when asked what series she'd most like to join.
"Dancing With the Stars," Nicole replied. "You see how quick I answered that? I've been thinking about it."
The clip quickly took off online, but the response was anything but supportive. Critics piled into the comments, with one writing, "ABC would never," while another called the idea "pathetic." Others joked they'd vote her off during the first week.
Still, Nicole has continued leaning into reality television. She won Season 3 of Fox's Special Forces: World's Toughest Test alongside Brody Jenner, and previously said the experience gave audiences a chance to see beyond the headlines that have followed her in recent years.
"I'm the opposite of being afraid of what people are going to see," Nicole said after filming the series. "I'm actually excited for people to see us stripped down, raw, vulnerable."
She's also made it clear that Dancing with the Stars isn't the only ABC franchise on her radar. Earlier this year, after the network scrapped a planned season of The Bachelorette starring Taylor Frankie Paul, Nicole jokingly submitted her own audition on TikTok. "Hey @ABC, heard you need a stand-in? 🌹😂," she captioned the video.
The latest report comes just weeks after Nicole's former boyfriend, Travis Kelce, married Taylor Swift in a lavish ceremony at New York City's Madison Square Garden over the Fourth of July weekend. Kelce and Nicole dated on and off for five years before ending their relationship in 2022.
Since then, Nicole has occasionally reflected on the breakup, calling the public attention surrounding it "overwhelming" while appearing on Special Forces. During a TikTok Live earlier this year, she also described Kelce as the "right person, wrong time."
