Although Dancing with the Stars alum Cheryl Burke‘s final show aired in November 2022, the former pro dancer is now coming clean about relationships with past partners.
Burke appeared on Tuesday’s (April 16) installment of Amy Robach and T.J. Holmes‘ eponymous podcast, where she highlighted that “dancing, especially ballroom, is an intimate contact sport,” per Entertainment Weekly.
“And it happens,” she continued. “I’m not going to say who, but I’ve had my own showmances, you know. It happened.”
When Holmes asked if she ever had a “relationship that continued outside the show,” Burke replied, “That was the problem. Because it’s seven days a week.”
Noting that “there’s a lot of great relationships” that have come out of the show, she added, “People got married from the show, right? But it’s seven days a week.”
Explaining that partners “are consumed with each other” during the intense DWTS commitment, she highlighted that they’ve also “seen their insecurities,” and that “they’re vulnerable.”
In terms of how many “showmances” she had, Burke told Robach and Holmes, “I would say it’s three.” Robach proceeded to ask if she fell in love with any of them, to which Burke clarified, she was in “lust,” not in love.
“Like it’s not love, right?” she continued. “It is [love] in that moment, and then you’re like, wait a second. How is this person like in the real world? Then all of a sudden the roles change.”
As for whether any of these three partners “ever made headlines,” Burke confirmed that they had.
“One of them basically professed his love to me on Ellen DeGeneres,” she teased, eventually identifying him as NFL alum Chad Ochocinco Johnson, whom she competed with on the show’s tenth season. However, Burke didn’t identify the other two partners.
Back in October, Burke revealed she “wasn’t invited” back to take part in the show’s tribute to the late Len Goodman, who judged the show for 15 years ahead of his retirement in 2022. Goodman passed away in April 2023 after battling bone cancer.
While speaking with Robach and Holmes, she reflected on this snub, connecting it back to the launch of her Sex, Lies, and Spray Tans, per Deadline.
“I would assume that some people may not be happy with my podcast that I have here with iHeart,” she said.
Dancing with the Stars is streaming on Disney+.
