Dancing with the Stars is gearing up for its 24th season over at ABC, and we've already learned about a few of the dancing professionals who will be coming back. Regardless, there will be one famous face who will be missing when Season 24 premieres. Cheryl Burke has announced she is leaving the long-running competition series again.
Reports this week indicate that Cheryl Burke is leaving because she hopes to host a network show of some sort. In June, she also has plans to go on a live stage tour called Love on the Floor. The news is a little bit sad, as Cheryl Burke only recently returned to ABC's Dancing with the Stars after a few season hiatus. After competing in Season 23, she looks to be leaving again.
That's right, this isn't the first time that Cheryl Burke has left Dancing with the Stars. During Season 19, she expressed a feeling that she was turning 30 and wanted to pursue other opportunities. At the time she left for an opportunity on NBC, where she was supposed to be a part of a variety show. As we all know, the major networks were big into variety a couple of seasons ago, launching shows like Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris and more. Most of those didn't go anywhere, and Cheryl Burke's didn't even make it to the air.
So, she returned to Dancing with the Stars this past season and memorably danced with Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte, who was bombarded by audience members at one point. I'm pretty sure that was a memorable season for the longtime dancer.
It's not just Cheryl Burke who is taking a break for Season 24. People reports that Tony Dovolani, Jenna Johnson, Karina Smirnoff and Mark Ballas will also not be back. As most of these people have competed off and on, it's not a huge surprise. Derek Hough memorably joined an NBC competition series a couple of months ago, so we've known he would be out this season for a while, as well. There is good news, though as Peta Murgatroyd and Maksim Chmerkovskiy will be back.
Although Dancing with the Stars looks more and more changed every season, the show has not really slowed down in the ratings or in the number of episodes it produces each season. Two cycles a year are still happening, and you can watch round 24 when it hits the schedule on Monday, March 20 at 8 p.m. ET. To find out what else is headed to the major networks take a look at our midseason TV premiere schedule.
