'Dancing with the Stars' Will Skip the Spring Season and Not Return Until Fall 2019

Dancing with the Stars is not returning to ABC in the spring as it has done since 2006. This year, there will be only one season. Usually, the spring season premieres after the finale of The Bachelor in March, but that is not happening this year. However, the popular dance competition show is scheduled to return in the Fall of 2019.

Fans were shocked when the network revealed in December 2018 that the reality show will skip the spring season. ABC Entertainment President Karey Burke confirmed that Season 28 of Dancing with the Stars will be back later this year to provide viewers with the entertainment they have enjoyed over 27 seasons.

Burke admitted that it is too soon to confirm if the show will return to its twice-a-year format. All she can say with certainty is that ABC will not have a spring season in 2019. She said that as of now, the team is discussing plans for the future of DWTS to determine if there will be one or two seasons each year.

Fans are believing that the producers and other officials are working on changing the format after the controversy that developed last season when Bobby Bones won the championship.

The country radio host had gotten poor scores all season, but he ended up winning because of votes from his large fan base. He won over more talented finalists who had been at the top of the leaderboard each week. There had been shockers on the dance show before, but this one did not sit well with die-hard fans. They called for a change in the competition’s voting format.

Sharna Burgess was Bobby Bones' partner. It was Sharna's first win after being on the show for 12 seasons. She came in second place on three occasions, but her time came after coaching and dancing with Bobby. However, they received low scores week after week during the competition.

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Sharna said she was incredibly surprised by the decision not to air a spring season. The 33-year-old Australian ballroom dancer is hoping there will be a surprise season in the summer or perhaps another DWTS: Juniors season in the fall. She concluded that even though DWTS will not have a spring season, she predicted the reality show will be around for a very long time.

At this time, Sharna is the only pro confirmed to be part of Season 28 when it returns to ABC later this year.

No official details about Season 28 have been revealed yet. However, it has been predicted to premiere in September because that's when the fall season starts for most shows. Dancing with the Stars fall seasons have started in mid-September in the past. So, it might have the same fall schedule as it has always had.

Dancing with the Stars premiered on June 1, 2005, on ABC. Over the years, there have been 27 seasons.

A total of 309 celebrities have competed. A total of 45 professional partners have appeared alongside celebrities. Some have appeared for only one season, and others have appeared over dozens of seasons. Some pros take time off for one or more seasons and return for more seasons.

The three judges have remained the same over the years. Head judge Len Goodman did take a few seasons off to judge Britain's Strictly Come Dancing. Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli have been at the judges' desk all 27 seasons. Julianne Hough replaced Goodman during his absence in 2014. When he returned, the show kept her as the fourth judge until she left the show in 2017 when she got married. She had been a pro dancer for five seasons and win the mirror ball trophy twice.

Tom Bergeron has been the only permanent host since the show debuted in 2005. There have been four women co-hosting with him.

• Lisa Canning co-hosted for the first season only.
• Samantha Harris co-hosted from Seasons 2-9.
• Brook Burke Charvet co-hosted from Seasons 10-17.
• Erin Andrews has held the position since Season 18 through Season 27.

Bergeron and Andrews are expected to continue hosting together when Dancing with the Stars returns to ABC