‘Dance Moms’ Star Maddie Ziegler Is Leaving The Lifetime Show: What’s The Scoop?

Season 6 of Dance Moms premieres soon, and all of the girls from Season 5 are returning to dance again for Abby Lee Miller’s studio. There is said to be a lot of drama ahead in this new season, which is exactly what fans would expect. While it will take a while before anybody knows for certain whether Lifetime will bring the show back for Season 7, reports are out that indicates at least one big change will be in the mix of things for the show if it does return.

Us Weekly shares that Maddie Ziegler, a favorite of instructor Abby Lee Miller’s, will be leaving Dance Moms after Season 6. Ziegler has been dancing for the Abby Lee Dance Company since she was 4-years-old, and she is one of the original Dance Moms cast members. Her role as Abby’s favorite has been a source of drama on the show throughout much of its run.

As fans know, Ziegler has been branching out and tackling numerous other entertainment industry projects, so the reports detailing her show exit likely do not come as a huge shock. Ziegler has been involved in multiple projects with singer Sia, and Maddie is tackling film projects as well. The Dance Moms star had a role in Sia’s film Sister and also just wrapped a movie with Naomi Watts and Sarah Silverman called The Book of Henry.

Although Maddie has been a dedicated member of Miller’s team throughout the run of Dance Moms, it isn’t a stretch to say that this is a good time for her to leave the show and spread her wings. With so many projects in the works, it seems that shifting her focus so she can be fully available for other opportunities is likely the right call for the 13-year-old. Ziegler has not yet confirmed the departure reports via her social media pages, so fans will have to stay tuned to see when she does.

Many would say that the future of the show seems to be hanging in the balance a bit. Though Dance Moms still has a lot of dedicated fans, things have shifted over the past few seasons. First came the contentious battle between Abby and mom Kelly Hyland, which led to the departure of Brooke and Paige Hyland. Months later, Chloe Lukasiak and her mom, Christi, left after another heated battle with Abby. The fight involving Kelly even led to multiple court cases, though at this point those have all been resolved.

Not only has the show seen several core dancers move on to other projects, Abby Lee Miller is in the middle of a difficult court case right now. Abby has been charged with 20 counts of fraud related to her recent bankruptcy case. Dance Moms spoilers for Season 6 have teased that this latest legal battle will be addressed on the show.

Before the fraud case even came about, Miller had been teasing difficulties behind the scenes of Dance Moms that might impact her future with the show. She has indicated that there have been big battles with a show producer, and the teasers for the new season make it seems as if a new instructor could ultimately be added to the mix of things. Abby has said that she will be missing from multiple episodes this coming season.

Will Dance Moms continue beyond Season 6? Fans will have to wait for news on that front, although many are speculating that it may be time to simply call it a day. However, Abby Lee Miller has created a new team of younger girls for this new season, so she is clearly preparing for the possibility of the show continuing past Season 6 without some of the older girls remaining on the team.

Season 6 of Dance Moms starring Abby Lee Miller, Maddie Ziegler, and the rest of the ALDC team premieres on Lifetime on Tuesday, January 5. Fans will be curious to see how the team does with a focus again on competing for the Los Angeles studio, and viewers will be anxious to see what kind of drama plays out in the episodes ahead.

Get ready for the BRIGHTEST season of #DanceMoms yet on January 5th at 9/8c! pic.twitter.com/7Fz7bo5vYM

— Dance Moms (@DanceMoms) December 15, 2015

[Photo by Jason Merritt/Getty Images]