Why Dancing With The Stars Just Hired Tyra Banks As Host

Dancing with the Stars is going to look a lot different when it returns in the fall for its 29th season. The show just made the decision to replace hosts Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews with Tyra Banks. The ABC show announced the news on Twitter.

Banks, who will also executive produce the show, couldn't be happier to join Dancing with the Stars, saying in a statement (via USA Today) that she is a longtime fan of the competition. "The fun mixed with raw emotion, seeing celebrities push past their comfort zones, the sizzling dance performances," she said. "It's always transported me to my days of turning it up 10 notches on the catwalk."

While fans are excited to see Banks take on the hosting gig, many are sad to see its current hosts leave, especially Bergeron, who has been with the show since it began.

The sudden change has left many confused. ABC's explanation for the host shakeup is simply that they plan to "embark on a new creative direction," as they said in a statement (via Newsweek).

The decision to let go of Bergeron seems to have taken the longtime host by surprise as well. "Just informed @DancingABC will be continuing without me," he tweeted the day before Banks' hiring was announced. "It's been an incredible 15 year run and the most unexpected gift of my career. I'm grateful for that and for the lifelong friendships made. That said, now what am I supposed to do with all of these glitter masks?"

Andrews, who has been with the show since 2014, also tweeted in response to being let go. "Thank you ABC and the entire Dancing with the Stars family for 6 memorable seasons," she wrote. "Those years wouldn't have been as special without my loving host, Tom Bergeron, the talented dancers, and witty judges. I will always cherish my days on the set, even if I wasn't the best at walking in heels."