Cheryl Burke Says She Wasn't Invited to Dancing With the Stars' Tribute to Late Judge Len Goodman

Dancing with the Stars alum Cheryl Burke announced she will not be in attendance when the show honors late judge Len Goodman on Oct. 24.

By Hayley Santaflorentina Oct 20, 2023 7:27 PMTags
Watch: DWTS Judge Len Goodman’s Cause of Death Revealed

Cheryl Burke is not heading back to the ballroom. 

The former Dancing with the Stars professional dancer—who competed in 26 seasons of the competition show—announced that she will not be among the alumni returning for the Oct. 24 episode honoring late judge Len Goodman

"For those of you asking if I'll be a part of Len Goodman's tribute next week on DWTS," Cheryl shared via Threads on Oct. 19, "unfortunately, I wasn't invited however, I'll be there in spirit and can't wait to cheer my former colleagues on!"

The two-time Mirrorball winner added, "Sending love and light to everyone. #riplen"

The tribute to Len, who passed away in April from bone cancer, was announced during the Oct. 16 episode by hosts Julianne Hough and Alfonso Ribeiro. And while Cheryl will not be in attendance, a number of former dancers are set to participate in the special, including Maks ChmerkovskiyKym Johnson-HerjavecTony DovolaniAnna TrebunskayaEdyta Sliwinska, Karina SmirnoffLouis van Amstel and Mark Ballas

E! News has reached out to reps for ABC and Disney regarding Cheryl's comment but has not yet heard back. 

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Celebrities Who Have Turned Down Dancing With the Stars

Len was a judge on the ABC show for 17 years before announcing his retirement in November 2022. Following his death, Dancing with the Stars honored his time on the show by announcing in September that they would be redesigning the classic Mirrorball trophy and renaming it as "The Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy."

Greg Doherty / Christopher Willard / Getty Images

The currently airing 32nd season features a judging panel consisting of Derek Hough as well as Len's fellow longtime judges Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli. 

To see all the celebs and professional dancers gracing this year's ballroom, keep reading. 

Barry Williams

The Brady Bunch actor will be dancing with Peta Murgatroyd.

Matt Walsh

The Veep alum is paired with Koko Iwasaki.

Mauricio Umansky

The real estate broker—who recently separated from wife Kyle Richards—is partnered with Emma Slater.

Mira Sorvino

The Oscar winner will be dancing with Gleb Savchenko.

Lele Pons

The social media star will be dancing with Brandon Armstrong.

Adrian Peterson

The football player is partnered with Britt Stewart.

Jason Mraz

The Grammy winner is partnered with Daniella Karagach.

Harry Jowsey

The Too Hot to Handle star is paired with Rylee Arnold.

Alyson Hannigan

The How I Met Your Mother alum will be paired with Sasha Farber.

Xochitl Gomez

The Marvel star will be partnered with Val Chmerkovskiy.

Tyson Beckford

The supermodel is paired with Jenna Johnson.

Ariana Madix

The Vanderpump Rules star is partnered with Pasha Pashkov.

Charity Lawson

The Bachelorette star is paired with Artem Chigvintsev.

Jamie Lynn Spears

The Zoey 102 star is partnered with Alan Bersten.

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