Our Early Predictions for ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Season 12

Almost every year, there's a candidate who comes on the show to try and lose weight/get in shape (Kelly Osbourne, Tia Carrere). Getting paid to work out is pretty sweet, and it's less humiliating than going on Celebrity Fit Club. I predict that Alley's kookiness and honesty about her weight loss struggles will really connect with viewers. Don't expect her to answer any questions about Scientology, though.

The talk-show host has never been once to mince words. Expect her to be the cast member who stirs up controversy with snarky talking heads and snappy comebacks to judges' comments. She probably won't win, but she'll make the show more fun.

There is one group of people who never, ever do well on this show - models. Past contestants like Josie Maran, Albert Reed, and Paulina Porizkova barely made it to the second week. Nemcova could have a chance of making it further, though, because her I-lived-through-the-tsunami story tugs at heartstrings and makes her a survivor.

Athletes do very well on DWTS, and Sugar Ray Leonard has the best name recognition of anybody in the cast. We haven't seen his moves yet, but I suspect he'll go very far.

Hip-hop stars are all over the place on DWTS: some do well (Nicole Scherzinger) and some are colossal failures (Master P). Lil Romeo's success or failure will depend on both his dancing skills and his ability to make the audience like him.

As a Disney star, Kane has a built-in fanbase (it has worked for Kyle Massey and Cody Linley in the past). However, she'll have to battle Lil Romeo for the younger viewers' votes, and the show's audience skews older.

The reality TV mainstay could be a contender this season. We know she's athletic, but that doesn't always translate to good dancing - she'll need to be graceful too. Still, she'll probably go a lot further than fellow Girl Next Door Holly Madison did, but it's unclear whether her constant tabloid presence will be an asset or a liability with the audience. After all, The Situation may be hugely recognizable, but his name recognition didn't help him on DWTS.

One of the best ways to score early on DWTS is by nailing the nostalgia vote, and nobody this season can beat Ralph "The Karate Kid" Macchio in that department. Whether he can ride the nostalgia train all the way to the winner's circle (a la Jennifer Grey) will also require dancing skill, but maybe those martial arts skills will pay off.

There's never been a wrestler on DWTS before, so it'll be interesting to see whether WWE fans follow their hero over to the show. If they do, he could be a huge favorite; if not, it's doubtful he'll last long unless he winds up getting great judges' scores.