Season 18 of FOX’s So You Think You Can Dance may be coming to a close, but fans are already looking forward to Season 19 and wondering who the judges will be. Keep reading for everything there is to know about the So You Think You Can Dance Season 19 judging panel, including which judges are leaving and which ones are coming back.
Who are the So You Think You Can Dance judges for Season 19?
Unfortunately, fans will have to wait a little bit longer to learn which judges will back for Season 19, as the show hasn’t officially been renewed yet. That being said, we suspect that it will be and the only question that remains is who of the Season 18 judges will be coming back. After a two-year hiatus, So You Think You Can Dance returned for Season 18 on March 4, 2024, featuring an all-new judging panel and a new format. The panel for auditions included former Dancing With the Stars pro Maks Chmerkovskiy, SYTYCD alum Allison Holker and SYTYCD All-Star Comfort Fedoke as a guest judge.
Following audition rounds, Season 17 judge Jojo Siwa swapped in for Fedoke. Siwa was a bit of a last-minute addition, as the show’s co-creator and longtime judge, Nigel Lythgoe, was originally announced as the third judge in December 2023. One month later, however, he was forced to step down following sexual assault allegations by former American Idol judge Paula Abdul. Cat Deeley, who has hosted the show since Season 2, also returned for Season 18.
Of the three main judges — Chmerkovskiy, Holker and Siwa — Holker is the most likely to return. The pro dancer has deep ties to the show, having met her late husband, Season 4 runner-up Stephen “tWitch” Boss, when they competed on Season 7 as All-Stars. The pair went on to get married in 2013 and start a family together, but Boss sadly took his own life in December 2022. Since coming on board as a judge, Holker has been candid about how the experience has made her feel closer to Boss. In fact, she told Soaps ahead of the Season 18 premiere that Boss, who served as a judge for seasons 15 and 17, had campaigned to get her on the panel with him before his death.
“I had so many conversations with him wanting me to be on the judges’ panel for years. So I’m grateful that you asked that. We talked about it for so long because he always wanted me to be there. He always said, ‘It should be you. I see you at this table,’” she recalled, adding of her new gig: “It feels like a space I was always meant to be in. And it’s felt really safe, and it’s felt very welcoming. I’m so grateful and humbled by it.”
Holker has not confirmed if she is returning, however, and nor has Chmerkovskiy or Siwa. Chmerkovskiy told GoldDerby ahead of the season premiere that serving as a judge on SYTYCD was his “dream job,” noting: “How do you say no? I mean, it’s a dream job for a person who’s spent their entire life, really, dancing.” Although Chmerkovskiy definitely seems to be enjoying himself as he fulfills that dream, he’s also gearing up to welcome his third child with wife Peta Murgatroyd and might have his hands full in the near future. The current DWTS pro found out that she was pregnant just four months after she welcomed their second son, Rio, so the couple are about to have two kids under the age of two.
Siwa, on the other hand, has lots of experience on reality TV. She grew up starring on Dance Moms and has competed on both Dancing With the Stars and FOX’s Special Forces. She’s also a returning judge, so it could make sense for FOX to bring her back again for Season 19.
Viewers will just have to check back here for the latest updates on the Season 19 judging panel.
The Season 18 finale of So You Think You Can Dance airs on May 20 at 9/8c on Fox.
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