Brian Austin Green has broken his silence on why fans haven’t spotted him in the “Dancing With the Stars” audience supporting fiancée Sharna Burgess.
The “Beverly Hills, 90210” alum, 53, said on Tuesday that production tightened restrictions on young children attending tapings, forcing him to choose between staying home with his kids or going solo. “I was there a lot in the beginning,” he said, before explaining that kids are no longer allowed in the audience. “I can’t be there with Zane and the kids. So we have found a time when it works where they can be home with someone and I can go.”
Green shares 4-year-old son Zane with Burgess, 41, and has three older children — Noah, 14, Bodhi, 12, and Journey, 10 — with ex-wife Megan Fox. The actor emphasized his support runs deeper than physical attendance. “I’m always there, whether I’m sitting in the audience or I’m sitting at home watching. I’m always rooting for [Sharna]. So we figure out from episode to episode what works.”
The scheduling juggling act comes during Burgess’ first return to the ABC competition in five years, where she’s partnered with “The Bachelorette” star Tyler Cameron. Green acknowledged the adjustment has been significant. “They have a lot of stuff that they do, so it’s not the time that I’m used to [having] with her. It’s just taking getting used to. It is going OK, it’s going to be really busy for the next month and a half if she makes it all the way to the end,” he explained.
The couple, who began dating in 2020 and competed together on Season 30 a year later, welcomed Zane in 2022 and got engaged shortly after. Green described their evolving dynamic as a trade-off they’re both learning to navigate. “So compartmentalize the stuff, and then when it’s done and then she has time, then it’s cool. Now we have our time back together again and it’s the same thing when I’m working,” he added. “Then it’ll be the same thing when I’m gone doing something. She’ll be holding down the fort. We are learning the trade-off of that.”
Green’s absence from the ballroom became a flashpoint earlier this month after he posted raw reflections on Instagram Stories about feeling “incredibly lonely” while Burgess was occupied with the show. He apologized to followers for being a “distraction” to Burgess and Cameron, writing candidly about his emotional state. “It’s honestly way more than I could’ve ever mentally prepared myself for. She is my partner. She is my best friend. And she’s gone,” he shared, adding that he had resorted to going to the movies alone.
The posts drew sharp criticism from Bachelor Nation alum Kaitlyn Bristowe, who won Season 29 with pro partner Artem Chigvintsev. On her “Off The Vine” podcast, Bristowe accused Green of publicly shaming Burgess rather than handling his feelings privately. “He was basically saying, ‘You’re never home. I am all alone. And, like, you’re spending every day with Tyler,'” Bristowe alleged. She recommended he speak with a “therapist” instead of using his platform to “humiliate” the pro dancer and “make her feel bad.”
Green did not directly address Bristowe’s critique in his interview, instead framing his current focus as managing the household while Burgess chases the mirrorball trophy. “I’m happy to hold down the fort,” he noted, presenting their arrangement as a temporary season of mutual professional support rather than a source of ongoing conflict.
The Australian dancer’s comeback season marks her first as a pro since 2020, when she and Green placed 13th as a couple. Her partnership with Cameron, 31, has drawn steady attention from both Bachelor Nation and DWTS viewers since the season premiere.
Burgess has not publicly responded to the debate surrounding Green’s social media activity or his defense of his audience absence. The couple’s engagement remains intact, with Green’s latest comments emphasizing logistical constraints rather than relationship strain as the primary barrier to his attendance.
Green’s remarks to the outlet represent his first extended explanation of the situation since the controversy erupted, offering a family-first rationale that contrasts with the more vulnerable, solitary portrait he painted on Instagram Stories earlier in the season.
Burgess and Cameron will continue competing when “Dancing With the Stars” airs its next live episode.