‘Dancing With the Stars’ Judge Unexpectedly Absent From Tonight’s Show

Dancing With The Stars‘ judging panel on Monday night looked like a throwback thanks to a missing judge. The show was back to a three-judge panel for Britney Spears night because former pro dancer Derek Hough was missing. At the top of the episode, host Tyra Banks announced that the vaccinated dancer had a “potential” COVID exposure. Hough tested negative, but out of an abundance of caution, he was not at the ballroom. That left original judges Len Goodman, Carrie Ann Inaba, and Bruno Tonioli as the only judges for Spears night.

Hough returned to DWTS last season to replace Goodman, who was not able to travel to California due to coronavirus travel restrictions at the time. Before DWTS Season 30 kicked off, ABC announced Hough would be back, expanding the judge’s panel to four judges. The 36-year-old Hough is a six-time Mirrorball trophy winner, and last competed on the show in 2016. Hough did not mention his COVID exposure on social media, so Banks’ announcement at the top of the episode was a complete surprise.

This is the second time this season that DWTS has been unable to avoid the realities of the coronavirus pandemic. Before last week’s episode, pro dancer Cheryl Burke announced she tested positive for a breakthrough case of COVID, so she and her celebrity partner, Peleton trainer Cody Rigsby, weren’t able to perform live. Instead, their rehearsal footage was shown. A few days later, Rigsby tested positive for a breakthrough case as well, so the two will be performing remotely for Spears night.

When Rigby announced he tested positive, the workout instructor said he had mild symptoms, including a headache, coughs, and congestion. “But in comparison to when I had COVID earlier this year, it is night and day, so that must be the vaccine and antibodies working-we’re super grateful for that,” he said in an Instagram video. Burke said she felt terrible for Rigsby when she announced her diagnosis. Rigsby and Burke will dance Jazz to “Gimme More.”

New episodes of DWTS air Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC, with voting from fans during the broadcast. The first pair eliminated this season was actor Martin Kove and dancer Britt Stewart. This is the second season hosted by Banks, who replaced Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews.