Getty Peta Murgatroyd
“Dancing With the Stars” professional dancer Peta Murgatroyd is encouraging her husband, professional dancer Maks Chmerkovskiy, to return to the ballroom dance competition, but not as a dancer.
In a March 9, 2023, interview with The U.S. Sun, Murgatroyd revealed that she’d love for her husband to return to the ballroom as a judge rather than as a dancer. She thinks he would be “the right fit” for the role.
“Maks is a character in himself,” she told the outlet. “He’s very lovable. He says what he thinks. I think it’s the perfect role for him. I think it would be a great seat for him to fill, you know, being opposite Derek [Hough] as well.”
She added, “They are very different, and I think they’re great friends, and it would also be amazing to see the different dynamics of what they see in everybody’s dancing and what they would sort of pick on.”
Len Goodman, who served as a judge on the majority of seasons of “Dancing With the Stars,” retired from the show at the end of season 31.
‘Dancing With the Stars’ May Not Fill the Vacant Seat
While it was originally assumed that Len Goodman would be replaced for the upcoming season, one of the highly regarded candidates for the role revealed that is not the case. Ballroom dancing star and mother of professional dancer Mark Ballas, Shirley Ballas, has said that there will only be three judges on the show this time around.
In a segment on British talk show “Loose Women,” Ballas shared that she had been in talks to join “Dancing With the Stars” but wouldn’t be because the executives decided there would only be three judges.
“I spoke to [executive producer and showrunner] Conrad Green. I think at the moment they’re going to keep it to three judges,” Ballas shared. She told the Daily Mail in July 2022 that she’d join the show if given the chance.
It’s likely the judges will be Bruno Tonioli, Carrie Ann Inaba, and Derek Hough.
Murgatroyd May Return as a Professional Dancer for Season 32
Murgatroyd and Chmerkovskiy are expecting their second child in June 2023, but the pregnant mother revealed she believes she’ll be up for returning for season 32 if she’s invited back.
“I went back after having my first child seven weeks after giving birth, so I think I can definitely do that again,” Murgatroyd told The U.S. Sun. “It’s gonna be like around the eight or nine-week mark this time.”
She’ll be needed if other pregnant professional dancers decide not to return for the upcoming season. Witney Carson, Daniella Karagach, and Lindsay Arnold are all pregnant and due in May, which means that they’ll only have a few months post-partum to recuperate if they do decide to head back into the ballroom. Jenna Johnson gave birth to her first child in January 2023.
The cast will not be revealed until the end of the summer, however, as there are usually last-minute changes. The show will likely premiere in September, so the cast will likely be set and announced by late August 2023.
“Dancing With the Stars” is set to return in the fall of 2023 on Disney+.