Jamie Lynn Spears.Photo:Emma McIntyre/Getty
Emma McIntyre/Getty
Jamie Lynn Spearsis stepping into her dancing shoes for season 32 ofDancing with the Stars!
ABC revealed onGood Morning AmericaTuesday that theZoey 102andSweet Magnoliastar will join formerBacheloretteCharity LawsonandVanderpump RulesstarAriana Madixin competing for this year’s coveted Mirrorball Trophy.
She’ll be paired withAlan Bersten, making them the first couple officially revealed for this season.
Asked if she was ready for it, Spears, 32, toldGMA, “I don’t know if one can ever be 100% ready to take on something this big; I didn’t realize what a commitment it is, but it definitely is. I’m ready to challenge myself.”
Spears went on to reveal that she’ll be donating her weekly earnings toSAG-AFTRA and the WGA amid their ongoing strike. “While everybody else in my community is on strike, I have this unique opportunity where I was offered a chance to work when my community cannot work. So I figured I’ll do this and I will donate my weekly salary… to just give back to them at a time where they can’t give back to themselves,” she said.
Rehearsals have already been underway, Bersten, 29, said, noting how the two have bonded already. “We had our first rehearsal and it was great,” he said. “Jamie Lynn is so hard-working and so dedicated and it’s actually so much fun. We get along so well.”
“He’s been wonderful,” Spears added. “My family got to meet him and he’s been great. I wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else.”
As for how her family reacted to the news, Spears — who is mom to 5-year-old daughterIvey Joanand 15-year-old daughterMaddie— said they’ve been supportive.
“Typically I’d be working on different ventures but I think it’s just important that I have this opportunity,” Spears continued. “And if I get up there and even if I embarrass myself, I’m doing it for a good reason and hopefully giving back to the community that’s literally given back to me since I was a little girl.”
Jamie Lynn Spears.Jamie Lynn Spears - John Weast - Getty Images Entertainment - GettyImages-459121730
Season 32 ofDancing with the Starswill premiere Tuesday, Sept. 26 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and will stream on Disney+ and Hulu.
The full cast will be unveiled Wednesday morning onGMA. " The cast is amazing so it’s going to be vey surprising," Bersten said, Spears ading she’s excited to grow closer to her fellow competitors. “I can’t wait to make a whole new family and bond through this. I think that’s going to be a very big part of it.”
Madix, 38, teased her turn in the ballroom with anInstagram videoposted on Monday.
“I am so excited to doDancing with the Starsthis season, I just met my partner. He’s really great but I can’t tell you who it is. The other people who are on this season are insane. So you have to tune intoGMA, and you have to stay tuned to see who is going to be on.”
“That’s right, I’mVanderpump Rules' Ariana Madix, and I will be joining the cast ofDancing with the Starsthis season,” Madix added, before showing off some moves with Hough.
Charity Lawson attends the 2023 ESSENCE Festival on July 1, 2023, Ariana Madix attends the Give Them Lala & Friends VIP launch on February 22, 2023.Arturo Holmes/Getty, Paul Archuleta/Getty
Arturo Holmes/Getty, Paul Archuleta/Getty
Lawson, 27, found out that she would betaking part in the dance competitiononThe Bachelorettefinale aftergetting engagedtoDotun Olubeko.
“So I know you like to cut up, you like to dance and you like to get down,” Olubeko, 30, said to Lawson. “And you know that we’ve talked about this about how amazing this opportunity would be, and I am so happy to be the one to tell you that you’re going to be onDancing with the Stars.”
The new cast members will compete in front of Hough and his fellow judgesCarrie Ann Inabaand Bruno Tonioli. (Former head judgeLen Goodmanannouncedhis retirementin November 2022, five months before hisdeathat age 78.)
In addition to changes at the judges’ table, ABC announced this past March that Derek’s sister (and fellow former pro)Julianne Houghwas slated to co-host alongside former champAlfonso RibeirofollowingTyra Banks’exitafter three seasons as host.
Afterstreaming exclusively on Disney+ during season 31in 2022,DWTSwill return to its home network of ABCfor season 32 and will be available to stream on Disney+ at the same time.
Carrie Anne, Derek Hough, Bruno Tonioli.ABC/Eric McCandless
Pro dancerVal Chmerkovskiyconfirmed his return for season 32, tellingUs Weeklythat he was “very excited” to compete. He also teased potential returns for his wifeJenna Johnson, who sat out season 31 during her pregnancy with their firstborn sonRome, and sister-in-lawPeta Murgatroyd, who welcomed hersecond son Riowith husbandMaks Chmerkovskiyin June.
Separately, prosLindsay ArnoldandWitney Carsonboth announced theywill not be returningfor the upcoming season ofDWTS. Arnold announced her departure after 14 seasons late last month onTikTok, and Carson followed suit shortly after.
“This was not a decision that we took lightly at all,” Carson said in herTikTokannouncement, referring to herself and husbandCarson McAllister. “But we will not be doingDancing with the Starsthis season. And as much as that pains me to say, I just feel very at peace with it.”
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Cheryl Burkealso announced in November that she would beleavingDWTSafter 17 years and 26 seasons on the show. “I have beencrying nonstop,” the pro dancer told PEOPLE exclusively at the time.
“It has been very emotional. There [are] a lot of emotions and there’s lots of excitement, but there’s also lots of fear,” she said. “At the end of the day, this is actually maybeanother divorcein a way that I’m going through in one year.”
source: people.com
