Here's Why Peta and Maksim Might Not Be Returning To 'Dancing With The Stars' Season 27

After the list of dancing pros who will appear on Dancing With The Stars Season 27 was revealed it was hard not to notice that there were two dancers surprisingly missing from the lineup. Peta Murgatroyd and Maksim Chmerkovskiy will not appear on DWTS Season 27, according to Entertainment Tonight. And honestly, right now, the reason for their absence is a bit of a mystery. But, for fans of DWTS's favorite couple, it might not be a bad thing that they're skipping out on this season.

This time around, DWTS will feature 13 dancers including old favorites like Cheryl Burke, Gleb Savchenko, Sharna Burgess, Alan Bersten, Witney Carson, Artem Chigvintsev, Lindsay Arnold, Keo Motsepe, Emma Slater, Sasha Farber, and Chmerkovskiy's brother, Val who will get to compete against his fiancée Jenna Johnson, who took home the mirrorball trophy last time around with Adam Rippon on DWTS: Athletes.

There were also some good surprises like the addition of longtime dance troupe member Brandon Strong, who will make his first appearance as a pro. Even he's a little shocked by the promotion. "Y'all I'm beyond excited to be joining these amazing line up of pros and compete for a mirror ball!" he wrote on Instagram. But let's be honest, the biggest surprise was Murgatroyd and Chmerkovskiy choosing to stay home for Season 27.

The couple has yet to explain why they're not dancing this time around, but in a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight Murgatroyd hinted that expanding her family was taking precedent over her dancing duties. Yes, Murgatroyd and Chmerkovskiy are working on having another baby, a sibling for their one-year-old son Shay. Earlier this week, Murgatroyd told ET she'd like to get pregnant "maybe in the next six months. I think that would be a healthy, good time for us."

When Murgatroyd was pregnant the first time around she continued to dance, appearing on Season 22 with model Nyle DiMarco, but later told Fit Pregnancy and Baby that it wasn't always that fun for her. "I'd literally fall asleep on the couch in the studio while I was supposed to be teaching Nyle," she recalls. "But Nyle and I won the season with me eight weeks pregnant!"

While this may or may not be the reason Murgatroyd opted out of DWTS this time around, this isn't the first time that the couple has taken time off from the show. The could last appeared on the show in Season 25 when they competed with another couple, Vanessa and Nick Lachey. Last season, the two sat out to focus on their own dance tour, Maks, Val & Peta Live on Tour: Confidential.

While fans won't see Murgatroyd and Chmerkovskiy when DWTS returns on Sept. 24, some fans thinks Chmerkovskiy has something up his sleeves. On Wednesday, August 29, Chmerkovskiy posted a cryptic Instagram of a silver bow tie in a black box that had fans guessing what it could mean.

Is it him announcing he's joining Chippendales in Las Vegas known for their bow ties? Is he teasing that Murgatroyd is already pregnant with another little boy? Is he putting together a fashion line? For now, fans will have to keep on guessing what the Instagram means because Chmerkovskiy isn't talking just yet.

Luckily, DWTS fans shouldn't have to wait too much longer to find out which stars will be dancing on Season 27. Murgatroyd and Chmerkovskiy sitting this season out might be a blow to fans, but there's still many reasons why fans should be excited for the new season of DWTS.