Brooke Burke Speaks out on Former ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Co-Host Tom Bergeron’s Firing (Exclusive)

Dancing With the Stars fans were stunned when longtime host Tom Bergeron was let go and replaced with Tyra Banks during the ABC reality dance competition’s 29th season. Although new host Banks brought a refreshing flair to the series, some fans still had difficulty parting ways with the beloved host himself after 15 years. Former DWTS co-host, Brooke Burke, who used to star alongside Bergeron for eight seasons, shared her thoughts on the matter after the beloved TV staple left almost as abruptly as Burke did.

“You never know with the networks,” Burke told PopCulture.com. “I was painting my dressing room the year ABC decided to make a shift and then bringing in Tyra and getting rid of Tom and then the no audience in the studio and it’s like, these shows that we count on that give us joy, it’s so unpredictable.”

Bergeron not being the host anymore wasn’t the only aspect of the show that was dramatically different: there was no longer a live, in-ballroom audience due to COVID-19 protocols changing up a lot of things for everyone both in front and behind the camera — something Burke confessed she couldn’t imagine not being a part of the experience. “I can’t imagine being in the studio as a performer without the audience,” the 49-year-old said. “One of the glamorous things about Dancing with the Stars was that big band and that live audience and that energy, it was also scary as s—!”

While there’s been a lot of change, Burke couldn’t help but gush over her time on the dance competition, even revealing why she chose to go on as a contestant in the first place. “The reason I danced on the show was because I wanted people to see me as a woman; uncensored. I wanted to dance on the show more than I wanted to host the show.”

Burke then added that she never even considered becoming the host because she was so over-the-moon just to dance on it. “I never thought about hosting the show. I wanted to dance on the show because I wanted people to know me, and it was scary and I like to do scary things,” she said. “And then hosting the show was the greatest gig.”

Following her time on the DWTS, Burke hit the ground running and has been busy ever since. After she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2012, she is now cancer-free and continues to share her passion for living a fit, healthy lifestyle with her fans via social media and through her app Brooke Burke Body. Fans can try a free trial by registering at the website and using the code GIFT4MOM.