How ‘Dancing With The Stars’ Season 29 Will Incorporate ‘Overdue’ Change

Season 28 of “Dancing With the Stars” saw a bevy of changes in format, cast and even the way votes were counted and teams were eliminated, but the ABC competition series may have another very big change up its sleeve when it comes to Season 29.

The newest season of the show, which has not received an official pickup but is still expected to air this Fall, could break new ground for the very first time by allowing a same-sex partnership to take the floor. In an interview with The Sun U.S., former producer Steven Price revealed that he thought it was about time for the show to make the step, especially after it was done on the Australian version of the series. He also stated that he didn’t think it would be a problem for the U.S. version of the show’s more conservative audience in areas like the Midwest.

“The Midwest is changing their dynamic now... they are changing. They are being more open to it because they are being introduced to it... love is love,” he said. “The chemistry is all the same. Same-sex it just brings a different twist to it, because that’s something that needs to be addressed and out there.”

Host Tom Bergeron has also sounded off on the idea, saying he thinks it is “overdue” to happen.

The idea of same-sex partnerships was floated for the show back on Season 7 in 2008 when Lance Bass became the first openly gay contestant to compete. Rumors flew that he had hoped to dance with a same-sex partner at the time, though he was eventually partnered with a female pro, Lacey Schwimmer. Bass later discussed it with E! News, stating that he didn’t think the show would be the right place to address the idea.

“I think it would be so silly that it would just overshadow everything else going on,” he said at the time. “It would just be like making fun of something.”

The idea was floated again for Season 13 and almost came to fruition for Carson Kressley, who later admitted that while he enjoyed dancing with Anna Trebunskya, he had initially hoped to be partnered up with male pro Maks Chmerkovskiy.

Adam Rippon, who won Season 26 with Jenna Johnson, also expressed a desire for the show to be more inclusive with same-sex couples as well, stating he thought it would be “so cool” if the show went that route.

As of now, nothing has been explicitly confirmed for Season 29, though if a same-sex couple was featured, it is unclear whether the pairing would feature a current pro or if a new one would be introduced.

A potential cast for the season has also not been confirmed, though the show’s producers have expressed a wish list for the new season. Among the celebrities whose names were floated as contenders were Charlie Sheen, Ryan Shazier and Christie Brinkley, who was initially supposed to compete on Season 28 but was forced to withdraw before the competition after suffering from a broken wrist. She was later replaced by her daughter, Sailor Brinkley-Cook.