Dancing with the Stars Season 19 – PRO WATCH!!
Yay!! Everything has been so quiet on the DWTS front that I didn’t know if Pro Watch would be happening. But Lauren, in comments, said that Sharna and Val said at BWAT that they find out this coming Wednesday, so I figured I’d put this out there right now, in anticipation.
ETA: I haven’t even posted yet and I’m adding this update. Lauren had this to say in the comments on another post: “Now that I’m out here’s what was said. During the Q&A section, someone asked them if they would be back for season 19. They responded they didn’t know yet & would find out Wednesday just like we would on GMA. If they weren’t back we’d see them “hanging at a coffee shop Thursday.” I was especially confused, because when I checked my calendar, Sept 4 doesn’t fall on a Wednesday. Then I checked out this site for any updates & saw this article. At the end of the show they again said to watch GMA Wednesday to hear if they’d be back.” ETA: @DWTSGossip asked around and Val/Sharna appear to be correct about Wednesday.
As always, it will be interesting to see who’s a pro, who’s troupe and who’s just plain absent. With a new executive producer, one never knows. Sure, he says he’d be crazy to mess too much with a winning formula – but he is a producer and may not be able to resist the urge. Of course, they could decide to clean house with all new pros. And yes, I’ve heard that some pros who haven’t been on for a while got meetings with the producers – but honestly, I think going backwards would be a mistake. But that’s just my opinion.
Then we have the pros themselves and what they’ve been saying. Cheryl’s been hinting that it might be time to take time off. Was she serious, or working on a contract negotiation? Hard to say. Maks straight up says he’s not dancing, saying that it’s a different show and it’s time for the more talented to take over. A couple of weeks ago, Derek said, “I have a few weeks before I have to decide” which certainly sounds like it’s up to him. I know I’ve said this before and been wrong (cuz Derek marches very much to his own tune, in terms of career), but I don’t really expect to see him with a partner – not after the wonderful, inspiring season he had with Amy Purdy. Not to mention he’s been on the verge of hanging it up for a few seasons now. Mark? I think Mark will be there if they find him a partner – it’s just good exposure for him, what with a burgeoning music career. Those four are the ones in question, for me. The rest I think will be there if they get a partner.
Despite what the pros are saying, I think they will do what they can to hang on to Derek and Cheryl. How successful they will be is another story. I think Derek and Maks will still be involved in the show, regardless, as Creative Director and Judge, respectively. I’ve been loving Cheryl the last couple seasons, but she hasn’t had any time off. Conversely, I’m not loving Tony (except as Leah Remini’s partner in crime on Extra) and he needs to take some time off, badly. If Derek is out, I think Artem will be taking his spot…or Artem could be taking the Maks spot. Sasha could move back to pro as well.
Next….the word of caution I hand out EVERY season: everyone who works on this web site is on twitter, we see what the pros tweet. I suck at facebook, so if it’s posted there I may miss it (Thanks, Karina). That said…give us a few minutes (20 or so) to post something before you come running to “scoop” us. It’s terribly annoying when people do that. Believe it or not, it actually takes a few minutes to update this site. 🙂 If you find something out and it’s been half an hour and we haven’t posted it?? Scoop away. 🙂
Normally, I would give a larger word of caution such as: a pro saying they are “looking forward to” season 19 is NOT confirmation they have a celeb partner. We need more than that. You’ll know it when you see it. 🙂 But this season, that statement carries a tiny bit more weight simply because they’ve been pretty silent on the matter. Relatively so, anyway.
The starting positions below are based on the individual pro’s status last season.
ETA2: A little birdie told me that Paul Karmiryan met with producers and auditioned prior to going on tour with Derek and Julianne. Yay!! Cross your fingers.
ETA3: According to Gleb’s wife’s instagram, it seems he will be involved in the show in some form. Troupe or Pro??
ETA4: Derek told George Pennachio that there was a “good chance” he would be back on the show. The question still remains, IMO, in what capcity??
Male Pros
Derek
Val
Tony
Mark
Henry
Maks’ spot
Female Pros
Cheryl
Sharna
Peta
Karina
Emma
Witney
Out for the Season
Maksim Chmerkovskiy – Likely out for good
Former Pros, Status Unknown
Tyne Steckline – Likely Out
Gleb Savchenko – Likely Out
Tristan MacManus – Pro on Strictly Come Dancing (UK)
Anna Trebunskaya
Louis Van Amstel
Kym Johnson – Judging Aussie version?
Lacey Schwimmer
Julianne Hough – on the list only because she didn’t rule it out like normal
The Troupe
Lindsay Arnold –
Sasha Farber –
Artem Chigvintsev –
Jenna Johnson –
Super Troupers, Past
Oksana Dmytrenko –
Kiki Nyemchek –
Nicole Volynets –
Ted Volynets –
Dasha Chesnokova –
Julian Tocker –
Potential Future Troupers??
Armen Way
Serge Onik
Tanisha Belnap
Marcquet Hill
This is so exciting. I feel like the new season has just officially began!! WOO HOO *high fives
Would love to see Kym Johnson come back more than Whitney. Sharna and Emma are must for me. Derek, Mark, Val are all main stays at this point in the show but Tony not so much . Would love to see Sasha back as a pro. I want Emma to be paired with a good possible . She has earned it. Armen as a troupe member would be fun.
The main question to ask yourself, if Lauren is right, is WHY are the pros suddenly the focus, to the point of finding out on GMA?
Is it that the new exec realizes they are truly the stars of the show? Or is it something else? Are they going to introduce the pros, the troupe, the judges (Maks) and their creative director (Derek)?
Or is something else happening?
No chance of Chelsie Hightower returning this season? 🙁
My wish list:
Karina, Cheryl, Peta, Sharna, Emma, Witney. (Insert Anna if Cheryl doesn’t come back)
Derek, Mark, Val, Henry, Artem, Sasha (Insert Gleb if Derek decides to move on)
Troupe: Lindsay, Jenna, Armen Way and Paul Karmiryan
Kind of strange to me they would announce the pros ahead of announcing the cast. Guess they are doing what they can to get people talking about the show early.
I really go back and forth each season if Derek will be back or not. If there was a season I was most convinced he wasn’t returning it would probably be this one. I just don’t know who else he could have as a partner to challenge him and he has so much going on. I do think he’ll still do Macy’s though and I do think Maks will fill in for Len when he’s in London.
For the men I’m going to guess Val, Mark, Tony, Artem, Henry, and I guess Sasha (assuming Derek doesn’t do it in which case I think Sasha is troupe). The females is a little more difficult I think. You have Sharna, Peta, Karina, and Emma for sure in my mind. Cheryl I think is out, she has too much else going on. Really have no idea on the last two spots though. I would like to see Witney again but I’m really not a fan of either Lindsay or Jenna (especially Jenna and I think she hasn’t earned being a pro yet). So not sure on the last spot…
Not sure I’m ready for another season already!
Ah, I knew I was leaving someone out of the former pro list. I’ll add her back. Never say never.
I just don’t get the pros being announced this soon also.
I agree with Ph #3 comments .
I love the idea of Derek being creative director and gets to choreograph all the openings and Macy’s. I also can’t imagine them getting him another partner as inspiring as he and Amy were.
Will be interesting on Wed.
Wow…it’s that time again 🙂 Just a few thoughts…
I’ve had the gut feeling (and not the good kind) that Artem will be a pro this coming season ever since they added him to the troupe last season. A reliable source told me that the producers “aggressively pursued him”, and that the troupe “is now a breeding ground for future pros – if TPTB don’t think a dancer can eventually hack it as a pro, they won’t be asked to join the troupe.” Sounds like they were setting it up for him to replace someone (maybe Maks, since Artem is another brooding Russian) from the get-go.
But on the upside – if Artem gets promoted, that frees up a spot in the troupe for another male dancer…and I’m crossing my fingers and toes that it’s Paul Karmiryan. Deep Throat mentioned that he/she thought Paul was initially told “yes” for the troupe last season, but at the last minute they opted to keep Sasha on.
And speaking of Sasha…I hate to say it, but I think he’ll only get to be a pro again if they can find him another very short lady. It sucks, cause I like what he did with Snooki, but at 5’6″ish, his options are pretty limited. Might I suggest Rhea Perlman (5’0″), one of the Olson twins (5’0″), or Hilarie Duff (5’1″)? 🙂
As for the potential new troupe members – Tanisha is probably a no-go for the troupe this season, as she made the top 10 on SYTYCD and thus is obligated to do the tour (which is why DWTS had to wait until season 16 to snap up Lindsey & Witney and last season to get Jenna – all three were tied up with the SYTYCD in the fall after their seasons). But I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see Tanisha in future seasons – she’s Mark’s star pupil and likely has him on her side. As for Marcquet & Serge? If I remember correctly, Marcquet only has trained in Latin – but so did Lacey, and she always got by just winging it in ballroom. And Tyne was not even a ballroom dancer at all! And I’ve heard a lot of chatter from some fans in recent seasons about wanting a more “diverse” group of pros – Marcquet could be a good choice for satisfying that desire. Maybe throw him in the troupe, let him learn some ballroom, and go from there? Serge has the Brothers Chmerkovskiy to vet him, but he didn’t seem to be super-popular on SYTYCD…and TPTB seem to only snap up SYTYCD’ers that were big fan favorites.
I get they want new pros, or pros back that haven’t been on, but they better not turn down long time pros that want to back. Some pros like Derek, Mark, Sharna, etc. can’t be replaced. So as long as these pros want to be back hopefully the producers wouldn’t be dumb enough to turn them down.
Serge is also “latin only” like Marcquet. Just FYI. 🙂
Problem with that theory, Angela, is that Derek, Mark and Cheryl probably are a lot more expensive than someone like Sharna, Artem and others. Other than that, I would agree.
Yay pro watch! My apologies in advance if whatever happens on GMA this week isn’t this at all & I got everyone excited over nothing. It was just the strangest thing in the world the way they kept referencing Wednesday for knowing & not Sept 4. I also overheard them answer some questions about Anna, Edyta, and Kym during the meet & greets. They said Kym is judging in Australia and really enjoying that (can’t say whether that means she’ll currently be doing that or that was her most recent project that she did). Edyta and Anna were both enjoying being new mommies. Anna was still performing, but she was really enjoying being a mommy. Not that this tells much about their status either way.. but just a little update 🙂
Lauren, DWTSGossip asked around and confirmed what you said. 🙂
Courtney, a little birdie told me that Paul told them that he did meet with producers. 🙂
I’m fine with everything, except for Maks being a judge. He will probably get even more arrogant and self-important than he already is (if it’s that even possible?). I can’t stand him. I hope that Len stays, but after hearing about this special announcement on GMA, something big must be happening and I really hope it doesn’t involve Maks.
I know that it’s highly unlikely, especially after last season with Amy and 5 MBTs, but I really really really can’t imagine DWTS without Derek Hough. I just can’t. Who am I going to watch on Tuesdays morning (hi, Europe here!)? I swear, sometimes I feel like I’m only watching DWTS to see with what is he going to come up next. Yup, I’m selfish. If he’s going to be a creative director, it won’t be so bad as long as is he still dancing in every single routine, but it’s not the same as seeing him with his partner…
It’s nice talking with you ladies, again 🙂
Well now everything makes sense. Back on Friday I was watching ABC, I think GMA, and a commercial came out saying that this week we would know DWTS news on GMA. I quickly came here to see if someone posted something about it, but nothing, I guess I was the only one that saw that haha.
Now, with what Lauren and DWTSGossip said everything makes sense. I share the thought that the producers now understand that the Pros are turning into the stars and, like in here, a lot of us follow the Pro Watch.
Let’s hope that there’s an announcement and not just a small not important comment.
Good to hear! I see that update now in the post lol. I must have opened it up before that was there.
I’m very curious as to what’s going to go down on Wednesday since it’s bizarrely early for any announcements. Other than avoiding spoilers and have time to pimp any big additions, what potential benefits do you see by announcing pros this early?
I hope they bring back Witney! I love new faces of pros and Witney proved herself this last season! I would love Artem to have a chance as a pro also. Wish they would bring back Gleb! Hotness!! Just my thoughts. So fun to see what might happen. DWTS has my attention!
I’m with you Tamara #15. As much as I want Derek to move on, I can’t imagine the show without him on a regular basis, I just can’t.
I’d love to see Gleb brought back as a Pro & be given a chance to prove himself. I like Artem too but don’t care as much for the fact that he spends a LOT of time with the fam….same goes for Henry Byalikov.
Paul was FANTASTIC in the Move Live tour!! He’s be a terrific addition to the Troupe lineup!!!
It makes sense to me to split the buzz/speculation into 2 events instead of all being revealed at the same time. It probably wouldn’t have made sense when the show first started, but as someone said the pros are now “stars” in their own right and can easily be used to generate buzz.
A friend made an interesting comment to me about Julianne and Derek and the program. Since they are apparently planning another tour next summer it would serve them well to remain in the public eye and on their tv screens Monday night. My guess would be Julianne as a pro partner and Derek as Creative Director.
It’s not a good idea for producers to get rid of fan favorites/crowd pleaders like Derek,Mark,Val,Cheryl and Peta regardless of money unless they want the show to go down. People want to see Derek dance as well as choreograph so they better do what ever it takes to keep him.
hmm.. serge tweeted that he’s on his way to nyc. does that mean anything?
Interesting that they may announce the pros before having the cast completely nailed down. Perhaps they’ll confirm the 16 pros (or 18 if the troupe goes to 6) without finalising troupe/teaching roles until the last minute. That being said, Strictly has always settled the pro line-up before the celeb cast (with no troupe to widen the selection) and it usually works out. (Occasional height mismatches!). The Strictly pros are starting rehearsals today for pro numbers and the launch show (couples reveal) in about 3 weeks. Perhaps the new producer on DwtS has something similar in mind…
I would think they would have the star cast set in stone before announcing the pros, if for no reason other than height issues, but I can’t imagine the show actually being that organized, lol.
I also can’t imagine Julianne coming back as a pro and taking what would look like a huge step backwards to Hollywood big shots (if she’s still pursuing a movie career), but maybe she’s looking to return to her dance roots and is focusing her career in that direction. the tour was certainly a huge success.
Maybe announcing the Pros early is a good thing overall. Now the analyzing and the speculation can begin for the chosen ones. But I have a feeling that the other pros will join in on the GAME… 🙂 Gotta love social media.
Usually celebrities don’t sign on until the last minute. It’s not wise to sign on the pro and find out that his/her celebrity doesn’t want to do it after all.
Dancefan, Serge is doing a dance seminar soon in NYC and he’s also part of the “Dance With Me” family. In other words, he does a lot of work there:
https://twitter.com/ArtemChig_Fans/status/498502584555282432
But, hey, you never know.
Friend of mine and I were there yesterday. Val specifically said they would find out this coming Wednesday. But, could this be cast announcements too? Are they going to announce just the pros on GMA on Wednesday before we know the pairings? Or is the GMA announcement something entirely unrelated to the pros or cast specifically? Something about the judges? Just have to wait and see.
I will have a report from yesterday when I can get a bit of time to write it. My friend will assist me on remembering things. We had VIP and got to meet Val and Sharna backstage. We got to talk to them for a few minutes. We got big hugs and kisses on the cheeks from Val. They were a pleasure to talk to. So gorgeous in person! We will be getting professional pictures. I’ll share those and I took a bunch. We had front row seats! We say: BRST SHOW EVER!!!!!
Ok, I didn’t hear/see anything on GMA today about DWTS, but, I’ve been busy and not watching every second of the show or the commercials either. Did any of you see anything?
Nope, nothing on DWTS this morning on GMA!
There is no “usually” Jennifer. Sometimes they sign weeks ahead of time, sometimes they sign last minute. It’s not all 12 of them signing the day before the announcement.
Cast announcement is September 4th. It’s entirely possible that they find out on Wednesday and it has nothing to do with GMA, except Lauren remembers hearing that they find out on GMA just like we do.
If they are finding out on GMA, I hope it’s from the privacy of their homes and not live on stage.
I would LOVE to see Tanisha on the show! I hope she wins SYTYCD!!
HEIDI:
DEREK WAS ON A NEW YORK RADIO STATION LAST WEEK. THEY ASKED HIM IF HE COULD CONFIRM IF HE COULD CONFIRM IF HE WAS RETURNING FOR SEASON 19. HE SAID HE WOULD LEAVE THAT TO THE PEOPLE IN CHARGE OF THE SHOW. ITS NOT HIS PLACE TO SAY. I’M NOT SAYING THAT I HAVE AN INSIDE SCOOP. BUT DOESN’T THIS SOUND LIKE MORE OF A YES THAN NO TO YOU?
BY THE WAY I MET HIM LAST WEEK. SO HANDSOME AND WHAT A GENTLEMAN? ONE OF THE BIGGEST THRILLS OF MY LIFE. WHEN HE PUT HIS ARMS AROUND ME I ALMOST DIED!
Speaking of sytycd future troupers, I wonder if they would look at Rudy abreu from this season. He’s got personality for days, popular, and one look at his cha cha with Jenna shows that he’s a better ballroom dancer than contemporary. Seems like he would fit….after tour of course
Margaret, it’s not necessary to use all caps – that’s shouting. And no, I don’t take that as a “yes”, I take it as a basic unwillingness to talk about it.
All the speculation about Julianne reminds me of a couple of things that happened throughout his summer. I was at a Q&A where when J and Derek were asked about future plans, DWTS etc. Derek said (about coming back)”well, I don’t know right now but they (DWTS) have talked to Julianne(at the time I thought judging because)when Derek said his book was next, she said she was “attached to 3 more films”
And another thing I heard from a couple of the tour dancers mingling and waiting for Derek to come out after a show and also saw comments on twitter referring to the tour “proud to be part of Juliannes tour” or part of “Juliannes Move family” or that she “was the best boss”& others like that. Occasionally they would include Derek in a comment but never called it “his tour”.
Even though when I went and friends of mine saw the shows and we’d compare experiences and comments, the big buzz in audiences, about 90% of the comments,were excitement etc. about Derek, it really makes me wonder if the tour was more about Julianne’s return to dancing and DWTS and Derek’s departure. I certainly HOPE NOT. I might be OK if he is Creative Director, and does the pro dances and creates something beautiful or even does 1 of the dances from the tour every week on maybe the results shows but nothing less than that. Yes, Julianne is good,( I actually saw her first on DWTS)and yes she was very nice meeting fans this summer but she is NO Derek Hough. His ideas and dancing are genius and there is something very special and genuine about his love of dance that people really connect to, and his warmth and approachability.
Anyway I’m hoping for the best. No Maks as judge, ridiculous !! or Tony, an added results show packed with lots of Dereks work, behins the scenes etc.
Didnt mean to use caps.
that was not my intention
Yeah! First Deep Throat appearance of the season!
On a completely random note, I really like the color of the 2nd ETA.
I hope all the wishes for Paul to be on the show come true. He’s so adorable and I really like his dancing. He has a really smooth, fluid way of moving. Does anyone know how tall he is?
I liked Sasha’s work with Nicole too and would like to see him back as a pro.
Derek as Creative/Artistic Director of the show is a great idea. Either that or founding his own company. I think that’s the next logical step for his talent.
I love Paul too. He was awesome in Ballroom With A Twist when I saw him last February and then again in Derek’s tour. He radiates pure joy, passion, and fun.
Interesting – listening to Derek this morning with Ryan Seacrest he says “I don’t know yet,” he reveals. “There’s a lot of changes happening. We got a new executive producer. There’s things in the works. It’s going to be an exciting season though. It’s going to be different. I’m not sure if I’ll be there or not, but I’ll be a part of it in some way.” but on KTLA with Sam, Sam says to Derek so season 19 starts on September 15 and Derek will be dancing, but does he know who his partner is yet (and derek just holds up his finger and puts it to his lips as to pose a question mark). Derek did not interrupt Sam and say no I am not coming back or I do not know yet. I will have to relisten/rewatch to it when they have it on play back on KTLA as maybe I misheard the conversation, but I was trying to listen intently. So who knows what is going on. Color me confused.
Raine, that usually happened, the “Julianne’s tour” thing, because they were responding to the MOVE twitter/instagram which was set up by Julianne. It looked to me like an automated thing. I’m not explaining it well at all, but those comments weren’t reflective of whose tour it was – it was both of theirs. I saw plenty of references to Derek as “the boss” too. That said, Julianne has said that Derek is the creative genius and she’s the one who “gets shit done” so it is very possible that Derek cedes a leadership role to her. But that’s just cosmetic and likely not “reality” if you know what I mean.
I will agree with you that the tour was “all about Derek”. I went to two shows and noticed a lot of that myself. Everyone in the audience seemed to be all about Derek.
Susan2, I think Paul is a bit shorter than Derek.
Carrie, I just saw the KTLA interview (and posted it on PDH) and I think the convo can be looked at two ways. First, they were wrapping the interview when the assumption was made that Derek was dancing and there was no time for clarification. Second, Derek could have slipped up before they went on camera and said he was dancing, which is where the interviewers assumption comes from. I’m just not sure if it’s an indication of anything. Interesting though. 🙂
Yup, I heard those comments too, she definitely is more the organizer. I think he just loves being around people and interacting, she is a little more guarded but still very nice and friendly. She almost choked up, it seemed at one point, talking about Derek’s genius that “he got from our mother and I got almost none of”. It was touching along with many of the comments from people at Q+A.
I’m glad someone else had the same impression about “comments”. I’m a “smidge” biased HA!!, but I moved around a lot, talked to people as did my mom, sis, couple of others (whole family BIG dance + Hough fans)and it was almost all “Derek-this, Derek-that”. The HOTness, his singing-to die for and on and on. Of course the guys (and I-girl-crush) thought she was GORG-eous but most guys also had a comment about Derek’s dancing or genius, in general. Either way it was WONDERFUL to see and hear how much people love Derek and his work and the whole tour, in general. Huge age range, obviously lots of people who like resurgence of dance.
I’m cool with all those names except for Tanisha Belnap. I think she is a great dancer but I just feel like she wouldn’t be a good choice for the show. Let’s hope Artem is a pro and Paul in the troupe though 🙂
I went to Move Live to see Derek. Julianne was an added extra bonus. Just as nice but I went for Derek as did most of the people I talked to while there. Now I will admit, when I showed people at work, doctors, med students. They didn’t really know who Derek was but they ALL knew who Julianne was. Oh, she’s that girl from the movies…lol
Ahh..Dwts gossip twitter tweeted that Gleb will be back on the show!In some form, pro or troupe. Im thinking pro there going to need a taller male pro other then Tony (assuming hes coming back) Im so excited!!!
Oh please give Gleb another shot at Pro. To leave him out and while bringing greasy, shady, Artem in would be a real shame. And I think Gleb is more accomplished as a dancer and a human being.
It’ll be interesting to see how this shake-up actually shakes up. At the very least I hope to see Val, Derek in some way, Mark, Karina, Cheryl if she wants, Witney and Sharna.
Even if I don’t like all of the new people, and really that’s only Artem for me, I’d be excited to see new folks. I count Gleb as new still because he only got to be a pro for one season and I think there’s a lot more depth to him then what he showed his first time around. He seems like a nice guy and he’s a great dancer.
Julianne, no thank you. She has an ego with no merit behind the size of it, imo.
Actually, it was Gleb’s wife who tweeted that and Gleb retweeted. 🙂
*DIES* So EXCITED about Gleb!!! YAYAYAY. I hope it’s true he’s dancing!
I would be happy if they bring Gleb and Sasha back. Gleb is a such a hottie. And Sasha did a very god job with Snooki and he just choreographed Gladys Knight dance with all other boys from DWTS in Hollywood bowl. I’m not a fan of Artem and Henry as it looks to me a bit of opportunistic to hang out with FAMILY and I’d rather have Paul as a pro and sit out Tony.
I hope I’m not getting my hopes up, but I’m so happy for Gleb. They never gave him a real shot at showing what he can do so I hope it’s as a pro, but troupe works for me too.
Is Chelsie Hightower definitely out?
Yes!! I would love Gleb to be on the show this season. I hope it’s true. He deserves a spot in the pro lineup. Maybe someone requested him?
I was at BWAT and thought they made a mistake saying Wed because Sept 4 is Thurs. I have an album from BWAT on my fb page.
I am definitely hoping Gleb will come back as a Pro, he was awesome in the Vail Intl Dance Festival. Anna was great,also but she has a 6month old baby. Erik Williams one of the Dance hosts asked Gleb, “Since your going to be on DWTS who do you want for a partner?”
Gleb said Ellen or maybe Sophia Vigara and everyone laughed, then he said he did not know. They asked Anna who she wanted for Gleb and she said Betty White. It was so funny.
I asked him after the show and he said he did not know yet, so Wednesday cannot soon enough after what Elena said. Fingers are crossed, he is amazing and did not get to show his abilities on Season 16.
I know we all believe that Derek has so many wonderful options, but if I were advising him I would tell him to ride this “exposure train” as far as it will take him through the end of this year. Book sales will only increase with his weekly exposure on DWTS, and he is finally becoming a household name for millions who may not have been exposed to his massive talents. If I were the producers, the new producers, I would pay him whatever dollar amount it took to be a pro in the new DWTS incarnation, as he is a drawing card like no other. And as a fan who would love nothing more than to see him go around on the DWTS merry-go-round as many times as he will, I would be over the moon to see him bring a weekly dose of joy to all of us who love to see his creative process in action. I also believe that Derek gets a fulfillment out of taking the journey of discovery with his partners that he does not get elsewhere. All of this speculation adds up to a wish and a prayer that he will dance as a pro this season!
It’s not just what we believe Derek has in terms of opportunities – we can actually see it. Book, New TV Show, Blackpool…those are just the things we know about. And last year at this time we had only heard about Blackpool and new nothing about the tour. So, just imagine what else might come out of him in the next year. My concern is that DWTS will prevent him from doing something even better, with MORE exposure. DWTS takes up HALF his year.
Well, it’s official that it’s going to be a Pro reveal. That’s what the promo on GMA said a few minutes ago. So… yeah, I guess that Pros already know who’s in and who’s out. I don’t think that they’ll find out at the same time as us.
Well, Ivan, you’re a bit late with that announcement and, actually, Val and Sharna say they will find out at the same time as us.
I hope Sharna is back, I really enjoyed her choreos.
From her twitter account, she is currently in Detroit choreographing a
dance(on ice?)for Meryl and Charlie.
Wonder how many heads will explode if the announcement is Julianne Hough returning as a pro AND going head to head with brother, Derek? PLUS…..Shirley Ballas as new judge! Nope, not one Maks/Val/Tony fan will cry “foul” LMAO
They actually SHOULD be happy IF Jules is back….that might split votes and allow Val and his new ringer to win the MBT.
Its only my opinion now. But if Gleb knows he’s back in some way don’t you think the pros know who will be back and who won’t.
Good for Gleb! In his first season, I was unsure about him at first. Then, at one point I realized that he was having a blast out there. So I am glad he might come back as a pro 🙂 I hope they give him someone really good.
I noticed in the picture that OfficialDWTS just tweeted about the announcement of the pros tomorrow on GMA they chose a picture without Derek and Mark in it. Did they just pick a random picture?
Random pic. Don’t read too far into it…9 times out of 10, they’re just posting whatever pic they have handy.
For what its worth, I hope Cheryl is back for this season as well. I forgot that she hasn’t taken a break yet.
Derek has known he was back weeks before any of the other pros knew. So no, I don’t think one thing necessarily implies the other.
I also don’t think that the person running the twitter account is actually a person high placed enough to actually KNOW who’s on and who isn’t. That would surprise me.
Thanks #Princess Heidi. I would think if Mark, Cheryl or Derek were not coming tback as pros they would have said we have some shocking news on the pros to announce or something more enticing than watch gma tomorrow to see who the season 19 pros are. Agree or not? Also I believe Shirley retweeted the OfficialDWTS tweet about watching GMA tomorrow for the announcement of the pros which I would not think she would have tweeted if either Mark or Derek were not coming back, but I could be wrong.
Yeah, I don’t think so Carrie. I think that we’re doing too much reading in to a retweet. It’s just the click of a button and people do it all day long without putting that much thought into it.
Frankly, the very fact that they are doing the announcement this way is the shocking thing – it implies a surprise. But I won’t be surprised if there is no surprise. I also think that if Derek, Mark and Cheryl aren’t included it will be because they didn’t want to be included.
Thanks #princess heidi for all your insight.
Agree that it seems to imply a surprise in a way. The pros have never really been given a spot like this pre-season… so it’s intriguing to me what could happen.
Man, …if I have to break the news to my Dad that both Cheryl and Derek aren’t dancing, he will be crushed.
It almost doesn’t seem right to have a season without Cheryl… but I could understand if she left. The last two seasons have been especially great for her.
#Voguerista – me too. My mom won’t be watching without Derek or Cheryl as they are the one’s that bring so much passion to their dances along with Mark, but I think Derek and Cheryl more. Nothing quite like Derek’s choreography. One thing this upcoming announcement has done is gotten everyone talking and guessing so I guess they accomplished what they wanted with getting buzz going about the upcoming season.
Which Professionals do you think are still under the DWTS Contract? With the exception of all the professionals from last season.
Maks publicist is tweeting big announcements tomorrow on GMA. Please no Maks as a judge. I think that would be wrong on so many levels!
Random thought but since they’ve already chosen Pros which means they must have stars signed to match them this late in the game. Regardless….
I love Carla Hall from The Chew and she’s been dying to be on DWTS forever. Since she mentioned she wanted Maksim back when he was on their show and she’s very tall, I would lover for her to be on and get Gleb! Tony would be perfect for her as well.
She’s naturally funny, charming and vivacious and I would love either one of those duos.
Okay, dream over. Fingers crossed she’ll be on soon, for me anyway. I adore Carla!
What makes you so sure the pros from last season are still under contract?
Eh, I can’t bring myself to care too much about Maks and his status.
I’m more wondering if his fans realize what his being a judge means? Lots and lots of people are going to be pissed at him, unless he’s sweetness and light all the time. Way more people than when he was competing. How much hate do CAI and Len get every week?? I personally think some heads will be exploding. 🙂
During the Q&A with Derek and Julianne before the Phoenix show a few weeks ago, Derek said he probably always will be involved with the show in some capacity, maybe creative director and Julianne said she would not ever return to the show as a pro but might be a guest judge.
I wonder if the early Pro reveal is tied to some other sort of promotional planning, eg a twitter (god help us…) contest on matching celebs with pros (could have personality/clues without names), or perhaps a few unfilled pro spots that could be filled based on viewer/fan votes or tweets (which would cover them if they needed to shift things around due to celeb changes – as we know they don’t stick to the true results of these polls).
Will look forward to catching up on the news Post GMA reveal here on PureDWTS. thanks again to all the mods for keeping us informed in the off-season and entertained during the season!
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