More pieces of the Dancing With The Stars season 23 cast puzzle fell into place on Aug. 25 as two more professional dancers were formally added to the fall 2016 lineup. Hours after season 18 champion Maksim Chmerkovskiy confirmed his return to the series via Good Morning America, former DWTS troupe member Jenna Johnson announced her own promotion witha Twitter post.
Jenna Johnson makes DWTS 2016 pro cast
The 22-year old So You Think You Can Dance alum first appeared as a member of the hit reality show's performance troupe during season 18, and the fall 2016 season will be her first as a pro coach.
Although the identity of her celebrity partner is still a secret, eagle eyed social media watchers noted that Disney star Jake T. Austin, who is rumored to be part of the Dancing with the Stars season 23 cast, recently began following Johnson on Instagram.
It's official.... IM A PRO on Season 23 of @DancingABC 🎉🎉🎉🎉 #DWTS pic.twitter.com/mJRXdEnB0Y
— Jenna Johnson (@Dance10Jenna) August 25, 2016
Other DWTS pros returning for season 23
Although only part of the season 23 pro lineup has been revealed to date, Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Jenna Johnson aren't the only known pro coaches who didn't compete last season. In fact, several of the talented dancers are primed to make comebacks. Others who are set to return after absences of varying lengths include Allison Holker and Emma Slater, who both competed during season 21, and Strictly Come Dancing favorite Gleb Savchenko, who had one previous stint in the US DWTS ballroom way back during season 10.
Others who are confirmed members of the Dancing with the Stars season 23 cast include season 19 winner Witney Carson, season 20 champion Valentin Chmerkovskiy, Sharna Burgess, Sasha Farber, Lindsay Arnold, and Artem Chigvintsev. Two-time winner Mark Ballas is likely to return but not yet confirmed, while Tony Dovolani confirmed today that he is out for the first time since season two.
With a 13-celebrity DWTS season 23 cast in the works, that leaves two pro dancers to be formally identified.
On the celebrity side of the ballroom, ET revealed on Aug. 25 that Little Women: LA star Terra Jole has signed on to compete. Also sparking speculation with a morning tweet that featured a string of dancer emojis was actress Sherilyn Fenn, whose PR firm implied that one of their clients would be signing on for the season. Other alleged contestants include Bachelorette JoJo Fletcher, Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte, Amber Rose, and others. Dancing with the Stars season 23 will kick offSept. 12 on ABC.
