That Tom Bergeron. He’s such a tease. After tweeting last month that fans were being heard, the “Dancing with the Stars” host has fed us another nugget suggesting that voting changes are in the offing.
Quoting the show’s tweet announcing the Season 28 premiere date last Tuesday, Bergeron wrote, “You’ll see those three lovable mugs for sure. Probably won’t see those 10 paddles for awhile, tho… 😉,” tagging the show’s judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Len Goodman and Bruno Tonioli.
You'll see those three lovable mugs for sure. Probably won't see those 10 paddles for awhile, tho…😉 #DWTS @carrieanninaba @GrumpyLGoodman @BrunoTonioli https://t.co/LqNV2GP0Uq
— Tom Bergeron (@Tom_Bergeron) July 2, 2019
SEE ‘Dancing with the Stars’ Season 28 finally has a premiere date, and it’s sooner than you think
Bergeron shared nothing else and didn’t reply to fans asking if this meant a new voting system, but this is the strongest indication yet that there will be one. We first had ABC Entertainment President Karey Burke reveal in May that there will be “fun format changes” in Season 28, and a revamped voting structure is something people definitely want in the wake of Bobby Bones‘ controversial win last season that was fueled by his large fan base, coupled with lower viewership, that more than compensated for his middling scores and ability.
As for what the actual change is, well, that’s anyone’s guess. Bergeron literally says we probably won’t have 10s for a while, and that crazy trio of judges always plays fast and loose with the high scores, busting out 8s and 9s in the early weeks when 6s and 7s were probably fine. The first 10s of Season 27 came in Week 3 when Juan Pablo di Pace and Cheryl Burke got a perfect 30 for their samba. So will the judges just be stricter now on their own? Does the alleged new system prevent them from doling out top marks the first half of the season, which means bad dancers would get lower scores? This would be wild and was not one of our six suggestions, but totally something the show would cook up.
“Dancing with the Stars” will return Monday, Sept. 16 at 8/7c on ABC.
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