Robert Irwin couldn’t wait to swap the Hollywood spotlight for the wilderness after claiming the Dancing with the Stars season 34 crown.
The 22-year-old conservationist told The West Australian that three months in Los Angeles was enough. “Being in L.A. for the last three months has been wonderful, but I am not a city kid,” he said. “I live out in the bush and have grown up there, so it’s good to be back where there’s a bit of greenery.”
Irwin is now filming the new season of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! in South Africa. “I couldn’t wait to get here, actually,” he said, underscoring his eagerness to leave urban life behind.
Family Ties and Home Soil
Australia remains Irwin’s anchor. He grew up at Australia Zoo alongside his mother Terri, sister Bindi, brother-in-law Chandler Powell, and niece Grace Warrior. The family continues the legacy of patriarch Steve Irwin, who died at 44 in a 2006 stingray accident off Batt Reef.
In September, Irwin told Travel + Leisure that Australia keeps his father’s spirit alive. “It is where I feel his energy and his passion more than anywhere else,” he said. “If Australia were a person, it would be my dad.”
Mirrorball Victory
Irwin and partner Witney Carson lifted the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy in the November finale, almost a decade after Bindi won with Derek Hough. “This has absolutely changed my life,” he told News Of Los Angeles after the victory.
Next Adventures
The new season of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! airs on Network 10 in Australia. Irwin has co-hosted the show with Julia Morris since 2023 and teased the upcoming episodes in a Jan. 11 Instagram post: “This season, we are changing things, we’re upping the ante.”
Dancing with the Stars returns later in 2026.
