Next week's episode of "Dancing with the Stars" will be an interesting one as it's time once again for Switch Up Week, wherein new partnerships between celebrity contestants and pro dancers will be formed. This will be an opportunity to get the contestants out of their comfort zone as they dance with a new partner and show what they have learned so far in the season.
According to ABC, each celebrity will perform one routine with their "switch up" partner and return to their original partners the following week.
Here are the official switch up partnerships for week 5 of "Dancing with the Stars":
• Bindi Irwin and Val Chmerkovskiy- Cha Cha
• Alexa PenaVega and Derek Hough- Tango
• Tamar Braxton and Louis Van Amstel- Samba
• Paula Deen and Mark Ballas- Jive
• Carlos PenaVega and Lindsay Arnold- Quickstep
• Alek Skarlatos and Emma Slater- Rumba
• Hayes Grier and Allison Holker- Viennese Waltz
• Andy Grammer and Sharna Burgess- Argentine Tango
• Nick Carter and Witney Carson- Paso Doble
Irwin is currently at the top of the leaderboard as she has earned the first 10 of the season for her emotional dance this week. But it will be interesting to see how she fares in her partnership with Chmerkovskiy, whose choreography tends to be on the dark and sultry side. Braxton and Van Amstel's rehearsal package is sure to be a must-see as both have very strong personalities. Meanwhile, Carter has the advantage among the male contestants as he is partnered with season 19 champion Carson.
Meanwhile, it was also confirmed that fan favorite Maks Chmerkovskiy will return as a guest judge next week and will be joining Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, and Julianne Hough at the judges' table. Maks last appeared on the show in its 18th season, when he won the Mirror Ball Trophy with Olympic gold winning ice dancer Meryl Davis.
On Tuesday, Oct. 6, Maks took to Twitter to confirm the news and wrote, "Can't wait! And can't wait to give my buddy @Tom_Bergeron a giant hug!"
Fans will surely be tuning in to hear his comments next week, as Maks's last switch up week back in season 18 was a memorable one for him. It can be recalled that Hough criticized him for "phoning it in" during his dance with Danica McKellar, and Maks appeared to have taken offense at this.
"Dancing with the Stars" airs on Mondays at 8 p.m. on ABC.
