Why DWTS fans are concerned about The Next Pro – | TV Shows

The Dancing With the Stars universe has formally expanded with the new show, Dancing With the Stars: The Next Pro, which goals to discover the show’s latest professional dancer–but some fans are probably frightened about what it’d imply for the show’s already stacked forged.

The ABC show, which celebrated its 20-yr anniversary in 2025 and is returning for another spherical of dance competitors in its thirty fifth season this fall, has long rotated out professional dancers, and new ones have helped carry in contemporary fans.

However, the Next Pro spinoff, which premieres on Monday, July 13, sparked worry among loyal fans when it was first announced, as they frightened the show would possibly cut some longtime fan favorites.

The show, hosted by Season 34 winner Robert Irwin and that includes Mark Ballas, his mom Shirley Ballas, and other Season 34 execs and personalities rotating as judges, is set to forged a new professional dancer who will make their debut during Season 35.

The forged of hopefuls contains Adele Zaikman, Allen Genkin, Benjamin Castro, Briar Nolet, Erik Linder, Jake Monreal, Natalie Jolley, Nina Mayster, Selena Hamilton, Stephani Sosa, Tristen Sanders, and AJ Pritchard.

While some execs may retire, some fans have speculated that it may imply unhealthy news for others, who might still need to be a half of the collection–and might discover their time with it cut in favor of newer dancers.

While not an unusual prevalence, as many of the show’s current crop of execs got here from So You Think You Can Dance before becoming a member of the show, they all largely also joined the show’s troupe prior to their promotions, save for a few, making the show more of a menace to fans who are nervous about their favorites.

As for which dancers are at risk, male execs might be more doubtless to discover themselves cut from the show, as there have been more of them in latest seasons than feminine execs.

Here’s which dancers may probably see their time on the show come to an end in the approaching seasons:

Rylee Arnold

The show’s youngest professional has confronted a truthful share of controversy since her casting, as she never carried out with the show’s troupe and immediately joined the professionals in Season 32. She is notably the youthful sister of Season 25 champ, Lindsay Arnold.

During her time on the show, she positioned sixth with Harry Jowsey, fourth with Stephen Nedoroscik, and tenth with Scott Hoying, and has confronted fan critiques of her choreography.

She was also named as having been warned by producers to “step things up” last season, including to hypothesis that her place on the show might be at risk.

However, her social media following, as effectively as the show’s scarcity of feminine execs in latest years, may depart her secure for now.

Valentin Chmerkovskiy

Perhaps one of the most common old-fashioned execs still on the show, Val Chmerkovskiy has been with the show the longest at this level, and also has a stellar report, having taken home three Mirroball trophies in his 21 seasons of competitors, positioned second an extra thrice and taken third an extra 4 instances.

He is still also in high demand among celebrities, with both Ciara Miller and Maura Higgins admitting they’d love to be partnered with him in Season 35.

While he’s still immensely common, Val’s time on the show may wrap up sooner than some fans might like, though, as he probably approaches an age where he might select to retire or start stepping back and making sporadic returns, equally to Mark Ballas.

Should the next professional winner be a male, he may see himself taking a back seat.

Sasha Farber

Sadly, Sasha Farber’s days on the show as a aggressive professional might be numbered more than others, after he was already cut from the lineup in Season 34, with some fans blaming Jan Ravnik and Ballas for his cut. He was also notably added last-minute in Season 33, after Bachelorette Jenn Tran was forged and needed a associate.

While he has still been concerned with the show by serving to shoot TikTok videos during the season, and still showing at official occasions, his cut got here after he also competed for 12 seasons beforehand, and was unable to win a Mirrorball trophy at any level, with his best end being third with both Tonya Harding and Ally Brooke.

However, one factor that may help Sasha keep in the lineup is his peak. At 5 toes 7, he’s one of the shorter male execs, with only Ballas and Pasha Pashkov shorter at 5’6” each. When shorter feminine celebrities are forged, he might be the best match to compete with them.

Of the confirmed celebrities thus far for season 35, both Ciara Miller and Maura Higgins stand at 5’7”, though with heels, they’ll stand taller.

Jan Ravnik

Ravnik, 31, joined the show as a new professional in Season 34, where he danced with Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Jen Affleck, and his casting was another controversial one, as many disapproved of his being added onto the show immediately from Taylor Swift’s Eras tour–without any prior involvement with the show.

Like Rylee, he was allegedly warned he needed to “Step it up,” and was even named by former professional Maks Chmerkovskiy as “not belonging there” in an episode of Peta Murgatroyd’s podcast.

“I’m sorry, Jan has absolutely no business being a pro on Dancing with the Stars. There’s zero foundation, technique, quality, or understanding of the partnership,” he said at the time.

While the 2 males appeared to squash their beef later, Jan might be most at risk from the male execs. As the most recent, he doesn’t have the same built-in fanbase as some of the others–which means he might be eliminated from the lineup more simply.

Gleb Savchenko

Of the male execs, maybe none has been deemed more controversial in latest years than Gleb Savchenko, particularly forward of season 34, where he claimed on social media he had been “fired” from the show due to allegations by his ex-girlfriend and season 33 associate, Brooks Nader.

After he was forged to dance with Hilaria Baldwin, many viewers soured on him, and if he has began to fall out of favor with them, producers could also be less hesitant to keep him on.

Like Sasha, he’s an established professional, having competed on 13 seasons, but has yet to win a Mirrorball, with his best showings being fourth-place finishes with Lauren Alaina and Shangela.

Unlike Sasha, he doesn’t have the potential to stick around because of his peak. Like Val, Brandon Armstrong, and Alan Bersten, he’s 6 toes tall, which helps him with feminine celebrities but makes the sphere more aggressive.

Emma Slater

When it comes to feminine execs, Emma Slater is the most seasoned of the group, with 17 showings under her belt and one Mirrorball trophy win.

However, fans have expressed concern that the show has tried to get rid of her in the past, particularly with whom she has often landed as companions, as she regularly will get older male celebs who don’t always make it far in the competitors. Her past three seasons noticed her partnered with Mauricio Umansky, who was 53 when he competed; Reginald VelJohnson, who was 72; and Andy Richter, who was 59.

Rumors also just lately adopted her that she was retiring, prompting her to deal with them on Richter’s podcast in March.

“I was like, ‘What rumor?’ They said, ‘Are you retiring this year?’ And I could see how a rumor like that would be starting, because they’re looking at me like, ‘She’s the old girl,’” she said.

“I would like it to be on my decision, I think,” she added at the time about a potential departure. “But I’ve decided that I’m going to expect to be there, and if and when they say I’m not invited anymore, I’ll conquer that when it happens.”