From the fans to the dancers to the celebs to the hosts and judges, everyone was left teary-eyed after Dancing With the Stars beckoned back a handful of familiar faces to pay tribute to the late Len Goodman on Tuesday night’s episode.
A handful of pros returned to DWTS to remember the iconic judge, who passed away from bone cancer at age 79 in April. Past and current dancers like Mark Ballas, Maks Chmerkovskiy, Anna Trebunskaya, and Karina Smirnoff performed a waltz to “Moon River” by Henry Mancini, in honor of the Most Memorable Night theme, while other contestants showed off their own sensational numbers.
Other familiar faces included judge Derek Hough and host Julianne Hough, as well as current stars and married couple Val Chmerkovskiy and Jenna Johnson, who choreographed the number.
In the performance’s final moments, a light came shining down on Goodman’s empty chair at the judging table. While some of the performers had tears in their eyes, fans were collectively sobbing on social media, too.
"One of the things I'm most thankful for is being able to judge alongside Len,” Derek Hough said in a speech giving tribute to the judge. “I was able to spend a little more extra time with him and for that, I'm really thankful."
"Getting criticized by Len was never easy,” Maks Chmerkovskiy added, “but getting that 10 made it all worth it.”
Goodman joined as the lead judge when Dancing With the Stars began in 2005 on ABC. In November 2022, Goodman announced his departure from the show following Season 31, saying he’d be retiring to spend more time with his family in Great Britain.
In honor of the late judge, who always had the best pronunciation of the score “se-VEN,”DWTS has renamed the Mirrorball Trophy to the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy beginning with this year’s Season 32. He’ll always be a DWTS idol.
