Proof That Derek Hough Is The Ryan Seacrest Of Dance (aka Super Busy Always)

A Dancing With The Stars season completely devoid of Houghs? Say it isn't so. People recently reported that Julianne Hough would not be returning to the judging table but, why isn't Derek Hough on Dancing With The Stars Season 25? Well, the fact is that he is a pretty busy guy and his current schedule is incredibly packed at all times. (He's like the Ryan Seacrest of dance.) It's likely that his other commitments may have played somewhat of a role in his decision to forgo his pro role this season on DWTS again. (He missed last season as well.)

Hough has been a part of DWTS on and off since Season 5 of the reality dancing competition, so it's always sad when he skips a season. Fortunately, fans also know that Hough can't really completely stay away from the show that made him a household name. Even when he has previously claimed to be moving on for good from it, he always returned to DWTS. In August of this year, Hough mentioned to Entertainment Tonight that he would absolutely return to the pro role if he could only have one thing happen first; he would like to have Celine Dion as his partner. Someone needs to get Celine on the phone immediately.

Way back in Season 15, Hough announced, per Entertainment Tonight, that he wouldn't be returning to the show at all, but he returned immediately in Season 16. He also returned for Season 20, when it had initially been reported that he wouldn't by Entertainment Weekly due to his role in Radio City Music Hall's New York Spring Spectacular conflicting with the timeframe of the show. He did however miss Season 24, to take on a judging role for the new NBC dancing competition World Of Dance and it doesn't look like he will be making a surprise return to Season 25, unless Celine signs on to dance with him out of the blue.

The reasons for his departure this season aren't entirely clear, but, from the looks of his social media, it appears that he is maintaining a pretty hectic schedule. Besides continuing to dance, Hough just saw the book he wrote, called "Taking The Lead" hit the New York Times Bestseller list for the second time in a row and he Instagrammed his gratitude to his fans.

As if Hough's set of special skills wasn't impressive enough on its own, he has apparently now taken to learning boxing in his free time as well, according to his Instagram posts of him training with his boxing coach, fitness trainer Alec Penix. Hough has also made some music with his friend Joseph McQueen. The duo even created a music video for their track, complete with Hough signature dancing skills on display, which can be seen below.

It has been a good year for the DWTS alum, as Hough was also nominated for an Emmy this year for Outstanding Choreography for Dancing With The Stars, and, although he didn't win this time around, he has been nominated nine times and won twice before in 2013 and 2015. When he spoke with Entertainment Tonight in the above article, he mentioned that the possibility of him returning to the series in the future is still open. Hough said, "I'm never saying never," and he added, "They're my family. I will always be a positive ambassador for that show. I love it dearly."

While he may not be making a return this year, he hasn't officially shot down the prospect of another season of Dancing With The Stars in the future. Hopefully, fans get to see him back competing for the mirrorball trophy sooner rather than later — because it's just not DWTS without the Houghs.