‘Dancing With The Stars’ Reveals Huge Changes Ahead Of Season 28

Dancing with the Stars revealed some huge changes ahead of Season 28 of the popular ABC reality competition dance series to Deadline.

A source spoke to ABC Entertainment president Karey Burke about what fans can expect for the show’s September debut.

“The producers were just in last week talking about the casting and the creative evolution. It’s all very exciting. It won’t be major format changes, just tweaking and tinkering… the show’s been on so long and it’s been so successful elsewhere, I think they’ve done quite an impressive job of looking at what works,” she said to the entertainment and industry news site of what fans can expect from the series moving forward.

“I’m quite excited about the casting they’ve put together. It’s not done, but the names that I have heard [are impressive]. I think it’s going to be a big season.”

Dancing with the Stars has not yet announced who the competing celebrities will be for the reality dance series that debuted in 2005.

One major spoiler for the upcoming season was dropped by show host Tom Bergeron on Twitter in July. He revealed that fans would see the return of judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Len Goodman and Bruno Tonioli but not necessarily their iconic “10 paddles” which, up until now, have been used by the trio to award scored decisions to the celebrity competitors and their dance pros.

Bergeron was tight-lipped about what that change would mean regarding how the dancers will be scored going forward during the upcoming season.

Dancing with the Stars came under fire with fans forcing the show to make big changes after radio personality Bobby Bones won during Season 27 of the series. Fans were outraged that many of the more talented celebrity dancers, such as Evanna Lynch and Milo Manheim, were passed over in favor of Bones, who had a lot of personality but few dance skills.

Many viewers threatened to boycott the series if a change was not made in voting for the series.

Burke is hopeful that the adjustments made to the series will allow the program to continue as a vital part of the ABC fall lineup for years to come.

Another big change will be in the frequency of the show. Instead of its usual twice-a-year air date, the show will now reportedly only air once a year. In past seasons, DWTS fans were treated to both a fall and a spring season but now the show apparently will only air in the fall.

However, the reality program may enjoy a longer season. The duration of the upcoming season, which typically would end right before Thanksgiving, has not yet been announced.

Dancing With the Stars will debut Season 28 on Monday, September 16, at 8 p.m. EST on ABC.