Lindsay Arnold will not return for Dancing With the Stars season 32.
“Last season when I kind of announced that I wasn’t doing [the show], it wasn’t like I retired or like I said, ‘I’m done forever. I’ll never ever consider doing the show again,’ because I will,” the pro dancer, 29, said in a Thursday, August 24, TikTok video while showing off her makeup routine. “I’ve really been considering the option and seeing if it’s something we can fit into our life … and ultimately this season is not gonna work out for me and my family.”
Arnold attributed her decision to her family’s lifestyle — she lives in Utah with husband Sam Cusick and their two daughters — while the show films in California. The choreographer, who won the season 25 mirrorball with Jordan Fisher, explained that it is a big “sacrifice” to pack up and leave home for weeks on end when Cusick, 29, needs to stay put for his job. The couple welcomed daughter June in May and Arnold wants to prioritize watching her kids grow up.
“I don’t want to separate our family,” Arnold, who also shares 2-year-old Sage with Cusick, added. “I don’t want to put my kids through that right now. I feel like this time of their life is so precious and is moving so fast and I want to cherish every single moment. I don’t want to miss a beat.”
Arnold further noted that it is her “season to be a mom,” which is the aspect of her life that is currently giving her the most “fulfillment.” (She previously opted out of participating in season 31 last year when she was trying to conceive baby No. 2.)
The So You Think You Can Dance alum — who is “so grateful” for her 11-year tenure on DWTS — teased that she is “not done forever” as a pro on the ballroom competition. In fact, Arnold added that she might have “some fun connections” to season 32.
“I’m not gonna say anything other than that, but I’m very excited for this next season. It’s going to be so good,” she said, leading her followers to speculate in the comments that her younger sister Rylee Arnold — a former DWTS Juniors dancer — landed a spot in the troupe.
While the DWTS season 32 pro lineup has yet to be revealed, fellow dancer Val Chmerkovskiy is itching to return.
“I’m very excited. I had an amazing season 31, so hopefully I could ride the momentum into season 32,” Chmerkovskiy, 37, exclusively told Us Weekly in May while also teasing that his wife, Jenna Johnson, would be coming back. “Jen, you know, I got rid of my stiffest competition by impregnating her. I don’t know if I could do it two seasons in a row, but she is so inspired and she’s yearning to be back on Dancing With the Stars, so I’m excited to see what she creates next season.”
DWTS season 32, hosted by Alfonso Ribeiro and Julianne Hough, returns to ABC and Disney+ this fall.
