‘Dancing with the Stars 22’ not featuring Ben Higgins, Lauren Bushnell as contestants; why?

Over the past few years, a pseudo-tradition has broken out following a finale for “Dancing with the Stars“: We see the reigning star of “The Bachelor” appear as a celebrity performer on the next season. It happened with Sean Lowe, it happened with Chris Soules, and we know that Juan Pablo Galavis was asked only for producers to go in another direction after it was deemed that he was not popular with fans.

So why aren’t we seeing Ben Higgins or his new fiancee Lauren Bushnell appearing on the dance competition this season? As it turns out, this seems to be an intentional move on his part. He told reporters in a conference call today that his focus in the near future is on Lauren, and the two of them establishing a normal life and a relationship. This to him overtakes a desire to further on in a career in Hollywood.

While doing “Dancing with the Stars” may have been a lucrative opportunity for the new couple, we’re not that surprised that he said no. Out of the three leading men who have appeared on the show, Sean is the only one to have made it down the altar. He and others have said in the past that the competition is extremely demanding, and it can make things difficult right as you are starting to get used to having a public relationship.

Also, Ben strikes us as the sort of guy who wants some sort of normalcy, since it seemed at least early in the season like he was interested in returning to the same job that he had going into the show.

If you do want to see some more news right away when it comes to “Dancing with the Stars,” be sure to head over to the link here now! Also, sign up over here to secure some other TV news on all we cover, sent right over to you via our official CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: ABC.)