Former Dancing with the Stars host Tom Bergeron is set to return to the ballroom for the first time since his exit from the show in 2020, as part of the upcoming 20th anniversary episode. Bergeron was the show’s original host when it premiered in 2005.
Tom Bergeron to Return for DWTS Anniversary Episode
Tom Bergeron is set to be a guest judge on next week’s 20th anniversary episode of Dancing with the Stars. In an interview with ABC News, Bergeron said he would leave the “technical stuff” to the three permanent judges.
“I’m into, did you move me in any way? Did you make me laugh, cry, goosebumps? Did you make me look for the exits? It can go anywhere,” Bergeron said, confirming that he wouldn’t be afraid to criticize the performances. “Bashfulness has never been my issue.”
Variety reports that the 20th anniversary episode, airing November 11, will also feature the return of several pro dancers who were part of the series when it made its debut on ABC in 2005. Fans can watch the new episode live on ABC or Disney+.
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Bergeron Left the Show in 2020
In 2020, it was announced that Tom Bergeron and his co-host Erin Andrews would be leaving Dancing with the Stars. At the time, Bergeron posted on X (formerly Twitter), “Just informed @DancingABC will be continuing without me. It’s been an incredible 15 year run and the most unexpected gift of my career.”
Following his departure from the show, Bergeron was outspoken about his experience, explaining that he had objected to the casting of President Donald Trump’s former press secretary Sean Spicer in Season 28. He told Cheryl Burke in 2023 that the casting felt like a “betrayal,” adding, “Up until that point, there were people of character there.”
As Bergeron told ABC, when former showrunner Conrad Green returned to DWTS, he “started extending an olive branch” to Bergeron. He explained, “It just rekindled in me all the 14, 15 years of wonderful memories.”
