Fan-Favorite ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Pro Says She Was Snubbed From Season 32

Sharna Burgess is speaking candidly about why she won’t be competing on Season 32 of Dancing With the Stars. Before the lineup for the upcoming season of the ABC dance competition was announced Wednesday, the former Mirrorball winner revealed she was not asked to return as a pro, which came as a “huge shock,” being that she has competed in 14 seasons after joining the show in 2011.

Burgess, who sat out Season 31 after welcoming son Zane with Brian Austin Green in June 2022, opened up about the snub during the Sept. 12 episode of her Oldish podcast with Green. “Last season I was supposed to come back but Zane was only 8 weeks old,” she told the Beverly Hills, 90210 actor. “And I was speaking with them about it. It just felt like I needed to sit in motherhood with Zane. It was always, ‘I want to come back next year,’ and ‘Of course, we love you, we’ll always have you.’”

Burgess quickly figured out that she had not been asked to return when she began hearing that all of the pro spots for Season 32 had been filled, which was “tough” to learn. “My last five years on the show have been rocky-not because of the show,” she explained. “I love the show deeply, but we had a new executive producer come in, I think five years ago now. I had just won with Bobby Bones and he decided to not bring me back. …There’s a lot of speculation as to why. My win with Bobby was I think the most explosive and controversial win of Dancing With the Stars history.”

Burgess’ 2018 Mirrorball win sparked outrage from many fans, as fan votes kept the popular radio host in the competition, despite his comparatively low scores. Looking to the future, Burgess is unsure where she stands with Dancing With the Stars, but she’s “excited” to have the space to create in a new way for now. “For me, two things can be true,” she explained of her feelings about the series at this time. “I can love the show and be so excited for everyone that got the position to be there, and really thrilled for the people that they have, but I can also be really sad and heartbroken that I don’t get to do that this season.” Dancing With the Stars Season 32 premieres Tuesday, Sept. 26, on ABC at 8 p.m. ET and will stream on Disney+ and Hulu.