Tom Bergeron will 'never' return to 'DWTS' after 'betrayal' of casting Sean Spicer

Former longtime "Dancing with the Stars" host Tom Bergeron, who parted ways with the show in 2020, has revealed that he will "never" return to the ABC competition program.

"It's not the same show. It's not the same world," he told fellow "DWTS" album Cheryl Burke on Sunday's episode of Burke's podcast, "Sex, Lies and Spray Tans."

“The show that I left was not the show that I loved, and that’s it in a nutshell," he said, noting that "95%" of his experience was "wonderful."

Bergeron, 68, explained that his rift with the show — which he hosted from its premiere in 2005 through 2019 — began with the "betrayal" he experienced in that final year, when "DWTS" producers cast former Donald Trump aide Sean Spicer.

"I'd been lied to by the people in charge," he said of learning about Spicer's casting in Season 28.

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According to Bergeron, "DWTS" showrunners he'd spoken to prior to the season had agreed with his feedback that they should stay out of politics amid a contentious presidential election cycle.

“It wasn’t about my political beliefs; it was about my feeling about the show: What is this show at its best? And what was happening was we were suddenly becoming the show at its worst," he told Burke. “This, to me, felt like a darker period of our history, and we were fueling that fire. And I just felt it was wrong. I felt it was a disservice to the show."

"I would’ve responded the same way if they’d booked Hillary Clinton, whom I voted for: 'Don’t go there — this is not the right time. Play to our strengths, be the show that gives people a break,'" Bergeron added. “At one point, I even said, ‘How about if I take this season off?’ And they said, ‘Well, we’ll let you out of your contract if you want.’ And that really pissed me off.”

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Bergeron made headlines at the time by publicly opposing Spicer's inclusion on "DWTS" with a statement that he revealed no one at ABC or "DWTS" knew he'd be issuing. “I wanted the viewers to know this was a step too far to me on the cusp of an election year," Bergeron explained to Burke.

"It is the prerogative of the producers, in partnership with the network, to make whatever decisions they feel are in the best long term interests of the franchise," he posted on X (formerly Twitter) in August 2019. "We can agree to disagree, as we do now, but ultimately it's their call. I'll leave it to them to answer any further questions about those decisions."

Amid his disagreement with the showrunners and network, Bergeron "knew it was probably my last season," he said.

Though he tried to “be Switzerland" as the host of the show, "I was furious," Bergeron admitted. While he credited co-host Erin Andrews for supporting him throughout Season 28, "I was miserable the whole season," he revealed.

"DWTS" parted ways with both Bergeron and Andrews in 2020, and they were replaced by Tyra Banks, who has since also left. (Alfonso Ribeiro and Julianne Hough are the current hosts for the show, which airs Tuesdays at 8 EDT/PDT).

"Now finally they’ve got good people back, and the show has righted itself to some degree, Bergeron said, adding that he "couldn't be happier" for everyone involved with "DWTS" now.

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