Famous Dancing With The Stars judge Bruno Tonioli has quit the UK version of the famed competition series, Strictly Come Dancing, and is revealing why. DWTS season 31 is set to premiere on Monday, September 19, and will be moving to the streaming service Disney+ and not airing live on ABC. Since the first season in 2005, DWTS has been a constant on the ABC network, but now making and network move. While the network is changing, all four of the judges will return to the competition series, including Bruno.
Bruno has been a judge on both DWTS and Strictly Come Dancing since the start of both shows. He has been a staple on both dancing competition series, and many fans cannot imagine either show without him. Bruno’s over-the-top reactions and constructive criticism will surely be missed by his UK fans.
During an interview with the Daily Mail via Deadline, Bruno revealed that he quit Strictly Come Dancing after he realized constantly flying back and forth from Los Angeles to the UK was taking a toll on his health. The DWTS judge simply stated he “just couldn’t fly anymore.” Traveling became too much for him to handle, and Bruno had to make the tough decision to choose one show to stay on. However, the famous judge did mention there were no hard feelings with him staying on DWTS and that it was a mutual decision between him and Strictly Come Dancing. The new season of the UK version of DWTS will premiere later this fall, and Bruno will be replaced by former professional dancer Anton Du Beke.
Bruno also mentioned that there was a time in the middle of judging when he just went blank and didn’t know where he was or what he was doing. The DWTS judge said that it only lasted for a short second until he saw the audience and everything came back to him. Nonetheless, Bruno realized how much traveling each week was affecting him, which ultimately led to his decision to only judge on DWTS.
When Dancing With The Stars premieres in less than a month, Bruno will return to the judging panel alongside Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough, and Len Goodman. Tyra Banks is also set to return as host along with her new co-host, Alfonso Ribeiro. The list of celebrities competing will be revealed on September 8, just 11 days before the season premiere. Until then, viewers are patiently waiting to find out which stars will be competing for the mirrorball trophy this year.
Sources: Daily Mail, Deadline
