‘Dancing With the Stars’ Mainstay Returns In-Person for Season 30

A familiar face joined Dancing With the Stars again. On Monday, which marked the Season 30 premiere, Len Goodman returned to the judges’ panel. Goodman, who is from the United Kingdom, was forced to miss out on Season 29 of the series due to COVID-19 restrictions. Derek Hough, who has also returned to the panel, filled in for him during Season 29. 

Season 30 of DWTS kicked off with four judges on the panel — Goodman, Hough, Carrie Ann Inaba, and Bruno Tonioli. It was a welcome return for Goodman, who shared some commentary from his home in London during Season 29 as he was not able to travel amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. ABC released a statement at the time about the change, which read, “In light of current circumstances, [Goodman] will be unable to judge this season live in the ballroom, though he will still be a part of the show in a different capacity sharing his ballroom expertise from London.” Just like the network shared, during the season, Goodman offered up explanations for various dance styles that the contestants would be tackling. 

Hough, who previously competed as a former professional dancer on the ABC series, also released a statement about the changes to DWTS‘ judges’ panel, per Newsweek. On Twitter, he wrote, “Cats out of the bag 🙂 Looking forward to being back in the ballroom. @DancingABC has and will always be incredibly special to me. This show has gifted me with so many memories and priceless experiences. Amazing relationships, growth, triumphs, failures, struggles, fears.” He added in a follow-up message, “celebrations, fun and just pure entertainment. I look forward to returning as a judge. I hope to be fair, fun, encouraging, honest, helpful, compassionate and I look forward to watching these amazing journeys unfold. See you soon. & good luck to all the competitors this season.”

Season 30 of DWTS premiered on Monday night. The cast includes country singer Jimmie Allen, Dances Moms alum JoJo Siwa, and former Bachelor Matt James. The season also marked the second with Tyra Banks at the helm. Banks was tasked to host the program shortly after it was announced that longtime host Tom Bergeron was let go. Not only was Bergeron fired, but his co-host, Erin Andrews, was, as well, a decision that left many fans devastated.