"Dancing With the Stars" revealed the celebrity cast lineup for its 21st season on Wednesday, just a few days after pro dancing veteran Peta Murgatroyd dropped out of the competition unexpectedly.
Murgatroyd said Monday she just learned she'll need surgery to repair torn ligaments and floating bone fragments in her ankle, a procedure that will sideline her for as long as
two months, according to People.
"My doctor said I needed surgery and I knew I needed to put my health first if I want to keep dancing on the show into my 30s," she told the magazine.
A fan favorite who is returning is pro Val Chmerkovskiy, who finally won the "DWTS" Mirror Ball Trophy last season with celebrity partner Rumer Willis, the daughter of actors Bruce Willis and Demi Moore.
This time around, Chmerkovskiy is paired with Tamar Braxton, an R&B singer and sister of chart topper Toni Braxton.
One of the oldest contestants on the upcoming season of "Dancing With the Stars" will be actor Gary Busey, who is 71. Busey announced himself as a contestant Tuesday night during a bizarre segment on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" in which he
came out on horseback, according to Entertainment Weekly.
When Kimmel asked Busey why he decided to participate on the reality dancing competition show, the actor replied, "I didn't have anything else to do."
Busey will be dancing with pro Anna Trebunskaya.
The other contestants who will appear on season 21 include:
National Army Guard specialist Alek Skarlatos, who will dance with Lindsay Arnold; actress Alexa Pena Vega, who will dance with Mark Ballas; singer Andy Grammer, who will dance with Allison Holker; animal conservationist Bindi Irwin, daughter of the late Steve Irwin, who will dance with Derek Hough; Carlos Pena Vega, a singer/actor who will be paired with Witney Carson; R&B singer Chaka Khan, who will be partnered with Keo Motsepe; Vine Internet star Hayes Grier, who will dance with Emma Slater; and reality star Kim Zolciak Biermann, who will dance with Tony Dovolani.
Also, Backstreet Boys singer Nick Carter will dance with Sharna Burgess; celebrity TV chef Paula Deen will partner with Louis van Amstel; and Victor Espinoza, who jockeyed Triple Crown winner American Pharaoh, will dance with Karina Smirnoff.
Deen, who is rebuilding her television career from an incident in which she was accused of using a racial epithet, told ABC's "Good Morning America" that she is looking forward to making "a bunch of new friends and
maybe lose some weight," according to The Washington Post.
The new season of "Dancing With the Stars" premieres September 14 at 8 p.m. EST on ABC.
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