So You Think You Can Dance creator, judge and executive producer Nigel Lythgoe teased the show's return after its hiatus. The competition aired for 16 consecutive seasons on FOX, with Nigel judging every season. SYTYCD season 16 saw America's Got Talent contestant and B-Boy dancer Bailey Muñoz win the title of "America's Favorite Dancer." Dominic "D-Trix" Sandoval, a former SYTYCD contestant, judged alongside fellow new judge Laurieann Gibson and original judges Mary Murphy and Nigel. Cat Deeley has hosted every season of SYTYCD except for season 1.
The show was originally picked up for season 17, which was set to air in 2020, with Nigel, Mary and Laurieann returning without D-Trix. Cat was set to host again as well. However, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the season was shelved and did not air the following summer either. Other competition shows that feature dancers, like America's Got Talent and even Dancing With The Stars, remained in production while SYTYCD was off the air. Recently, rumors have swirled that the show may finally be returning.
Now So You Think You Can Dance fans have another reason to be excited. Nigel, who produced the first 12 seasons of American Idol, reunited with host Ryan Seacrest on Ryan's radio show, On Air With Ryan Seacrest. During the interview, Ryan asked Nigel about the status of SYTYCD. Nigel said, "I believe it's gonna come back this year...No one has really contacted me yet. But there's rumors that it's gonna come back." This came a few weeks after Nigel tweeted about the show's potential return, alongside some news about another one of his projects.
Nigel went on to explain why SYTYCD couldn't be produced during the height of the pandemic, adding, "Obviously during the COVID period, it was really difficult to create a bubble, because we had so many different choreographers coming in...and [the contestants] were swapping partners. It wasn't as though you were staying with one partner. So it was very difficult to do it...during this pandemic. But hopefully we're coming to the end of it now, and it will come back." If SYTYCD does indeed make its triumphant return, it will be interesting to see how the format differs or stays similar to where it was before. While diehard fans were loyal to the long-running series, the ratings were less than stellar in its last couple of seasons. A constant complaint from viewers later on was the producers' decision to start the live voting rounds when only 10 contestants were left, as opposed to 20.
But actually, during the SYTYCD season 16 finale, Cat asked Nigel what fans could expect if the show were to return for its yet-to-be-renewed season 17. Nigel told viewers that he was considering bringing back the Top 20 format. Also, since SYTYCD season 17 was set to include Nigel, Laurieann and Mary as judges, fans may wonder if it's guaranteed that all of the judges will be back. They will just have to find out, depending on if So You Think You Can Dance does in fact return this year.
Sources: On Air With Ryan Seacrest/YouTube, Nigel Lythgoe/Twitter