Maddie Ziegler Leaving ‘Dance Moms’ After Six Seasons to Move Into Acting

Maddie Ziegler is saying goodbye to the Abby Lee Dance Company and she is moving on from Dance Moms. The talented dancer has been on the show since the beginning, and she’s undeniably the breakout star of the series. Ziegler may have grown out of her role on the show and wants to focus on acting now.

“I am leaving, but it’ll be a good thing because we’re moving on to cool things,” Ziegler told reporters at the Nickelodeon's 2016 Kids' Choice Awards on March 12.

When asked about what she will miss on the show, she replied, “Definitely being with the girls every single day and having so much fun when you’re not dancing.”

The 13-year-old has been on the show since it premiered in 2011. Her undeniable dancing skills and her heartfelt interpretations quickly made her a fan favorite and she’s also adored by their terror dance teacher, Abby Lee.

But now that she has grown up and realized that there is more to just competing in dance shows, Ziegler has expanded her wings and ventured to music videos and movies.

She famously starred in Sia’s music videos for “Chandelier,” “Big Girls Cry” and “Elastic Heart,” which also starred Shia LaBeouf.

Ziegler just wrapped filming The Book of Henry, which she stars alongside Jacob Tremblay, Lee Pace and Naomi Watts. She is set to star in Sister, a film that Sia wrote and will direct.

"I was too embarrassed to tell anyone I wanted to make a movie because I thought it would be seen as a vanity project because I was a singer," the 40-year-old singer told The Hollywood Reporter last November. "And then last year, after I made the 'Chandelier' video, I realized that I was pretty good at directing, so I felt a little bit braver."