Despite reports that professional dancer, Makism Chmerkoviskiy is done with Dancing With the Stars, ABC's president of entertainment Paul Lee said that Chmerkovskiy may in fact return to the show this fall.
Chmerkovskiy, 33, has appeared as a show-favorite and come close enough to taste the mirror ball trophy quite a few times on the ABC hit show, according to the Examiner. In the past he has spun around stars such as Tia Carrere, Willa Ford, Hope Solo, Debi Mazar, and finished in second place with Kirstie Alley in season 12, and with Melanie Brown in season 5. He also finished in third with stars Laila Ali and Erin Andrews.
Back in February 2013, Chmerkovskiy announced he would not be returning to the show when fans did not see his name on the season 16 list of partners, according to US Magazine.
"I just want to set the record straight to all of my amazing fans that I will unfortunately not be returning for this season of Dancing With the Stars," he said on Good Morning America at the time. “I've been a pro dancer on the show for about seven years now and am eager to explore other opportunities that have been made possible because of Dancing With the Stars. I'm going to take this time to dive into producing and acting, while fulfilling my sponsorship obligations."
On Chmerkovskiy’s break from the show he has spent time performing on Broadway with ex-fiance Karina Smirnoff in the revival of Luyis Bravo’s “Forever Tango.”
"Maks is part of the family," Lee said at the Television Critics Association's press tour on Sunday, August 4. "He may well be back. We love having him be part of the show."
Fans are overjoyed with the news and are more excited than ever for the season 17 premiere of Dancing With the Stars, scheduled for Monday, September 16 at 8 p.m. EST.
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