Huge blow for Sonia Kruger as long-running television series faces the axe

By MEGAN WATTS and STEPHEN BISSET FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA

Published: 02:39 BST, 6 June 2025 | Updated: 02:39 BST, 6 June 2025

Channel Seven’s Dancing with the Stars could be facing the axe.

The broadcaster is rumoured to be cancelling the beloved Aussie reality series just a week before the 22nd season hits screens, leaving hosts Dr. Chris Brown and Sonia Kruger’s jobs up in the air, according to news.com.au. 

Insiders claim that the Seven network is tired of forking out large sums of money for the show’s production, which is said to cost around $1million per episode. 

The network’s tight purse strings explain why recent seasons have seen shorter production periods, now taking place over five weeks as opposed to ten weeks back in the early 2000s.

This isn’t the first time Dancing with the Stars has been cancelled by Seven. 

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Channel Seven is set to cancel the beloved Aussie reality series just a week before the 22nd season hits screens, leaving hosts Dr. Chris Brown (left) and Sonia Kruger’s (right) careers up in the air

Insiders claim that the network is tired of forking out large sums of money for the show’s production, which is said to cost around $1 million per episode

The broadcast was swiped off of Aussie screens in 2015 after viewership numbers made a swift decline. 

However, it was quickly picked up in 2019 by Channel Ten, who put it back down the following year.

It came as a surprise when Channel Seven revisited the broadcast in 2021, with close sources revealing that a big factor in the show’s return was Sonia’s new role under the network’s helm.

The cancellation of Dancing with the Stars marks the third program hosted by Sonia, 59, that has been axed by Seven.

In October last year, industry insiders claimed the popular Channel Seven star’s future at the network could be up in the air.

Despite the television favourite once being one of Seven’s most in-demand stars, rumours circulated that may no longer be the case after changes at the network.

One change included her former hosting gig on Big Brother jumping ship after the reality show moved to Network Ten in 2025 with a rebooted format and new host in Mel Trancia.

Another big change for Sonia, who also hosts The Voice on Seven, was her husband Craig McPherson vacating his role as head of news and current affairs at Seven West Media in April. 

The cancellation of Dancing with the Stars marks the third program hosted by Sonia that has been axed by Seven

A Seven spokesperson rubbished the Daily Telegraph’s claims that these developments had seen the star fall out of favour at the network.

‘You are making things up. This is total fiction and completely wrong. To publish this rumour would be deliberately misleading,’ the spokesperson said.

Despite this, the publication claimed that a ‘highly placed source’ at Seven said that Sonia was ‘vulnerable’ citing her reported $1.3 million contract.

‘Now Big Brother has gone, she will likely be doing less,’ the unnamed source told the outlet.

Representatives for the Gold Logie winner threw more water on the rumour fire, telling the publication Sonia was ‘happy’ at the network.

‘Sonia is under a long-term contract with Seven, has not received a pay cut, and is very happy at the network.’

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Huge blow for Sonia Kruger as long-running television series faces the axe

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