Fans of Dancing with the Stars experienced a whirlwind of drama and excitement during the show’s 28th season, including a new judging system, a few controversial choices in contestants, and a stunning new ballroom. But that wasn’t the only thing that was unique about season 28 - the show took a prolonged break prior to the start of the season, skipping their usual spring premiere during 2019.
The competitive dance series, which started back in the summer of 2005, showcases a variety of celebrities competing against each other with the help of their professional ballroom coaches. Week after week, contestants compete for the affection of the judges and America. From actors to singers, journalists, professional athletes, entrepreneurs, and even internet personalities, Dancing with the Stars has been extremely inclusive in their definition of “celebrity,” attracting fans of all ages to tune in and vote.
Despite ABC being fairly tightlipped about the going’s on of any of their shows, here’s what we know so far about the 29th season of Dancing with the Stars.
Dancing with the Stars Season 29 Airdate
Dancing with the Stars usually airs between seasons of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. While the showrunners have yet to confirm when the 29th season will air, it’s most likely going to return in the fall of 2020. According to Gold Derby, the show is going to skip their spring season again this year. This trend, which started after Bobby Bones won in the 27th season, gave the showrunners time to work on the revamps they had been teasing throughout season 27, but now the break is seeming more and more like a good idea.
ABC Entertainment President Karey Burke said the network was “in conversations” about whether the show would return to its twice-a-year format, but there has yet to be confirmation of that. It is the hope of the network that the long break between seasons will keep the show fresh and fans eager for more. In addition, a majority of the pros are going on the Dancing With The Stars Live! tour, which runs through April. That doesn’t leave a lot of time to make it back to the ballroom for tapings, so a fall 2020 premiere is seeming more and more likely.
Dancing with the Stars Season 29 Cast
If the airdate of the next season is a secret, the list of stars being cast for the Dancing with the Stars is the holy grail. The cast members haven’t been announced yet, and if the next season isn’t airing until the fall, it’s likely we won’t find out which celebrities will enter the ballroom until the end of the summer.
There are a few rumors about who will participate in the 29th season of Dancing With The Stars. ABC has their hearts set on a few celebrities for season 29, including Charlie Sheen. Rob Mills, ABC Entertainment’s Senior VP of Alternative Series, Specials and Late-night Programming told Variety, “I don’t think it’s a huge secret because he came out and talked about it, but I would still love Charlie Sheen to come on.” ABC also has their eyes on NFL player Ryan Shizer, who suffered a serious spine injury in 2017, more of the Queer Eye cast, and possibly bringing Christie Brinkley back for another shot. Brinkley’s daughter, Sailor Brinkley-Cook, had to step in and take her place after she suffered an arm injury early into season 28.
Good Morning America usually hosts a big reveal special during the month of August, so fans can look forward to that announcement after their summer vacation!
Dancing with the Stars Scoring Changes In Season 29
After Bobby Bones took the Mirror Ball home in season 27, there was quite a bit of outrage. Despite receiving consistently low scores, voting fans kept Bones around until the end of the competition. After a prolonged break, the show came back with a new voting structure in the hopes of making it less of a popularity contest and more of a dance competition. Instead of basing who goes home on the lowest judges scores and fan votes, now the pro judges get to determine who they want to save out of the bottom two.
During season 28, fans saw that there were still a few issues with this voting system when Sean Spicer - one of the lowest-scoring competitors - carried on week after week and James Van Der Beek - a fan-favorite and top-scoring competitor - went home after receiving low scores the week of his wife’s miscarriage. While nothing has been confirmed, fans shouldn’t be surprised if there are a few more changes to the way voting is handled during season 29.
It’s looking like fans will have to wait until the fall of this year to get their Dancing with the Stars fix, but if that means a better voting system and more authentic competition, they’re willing to wait.
Next: Dancing with the Stars Season 28 Contestants, Ranked from Strongest to Weakest
Source: Gold Derby, Variety
