How a ‘Dancing With the Stars’ controversy and reference to Will Smith’s slap at the Oscars led to the suspension of professional dancer Val Chmerkovskiy

It’s been a good week Dancing with the stars drama, both in and out of the ballroom, with a judge accusing two contestants of using an illegal move during their routine and a professional dancer criticizing the judge in a social media post that temporarily suspended him from the show.

The controversy began on the Oct. 13 episode of the ABC reality dance competition, dubbed Super Bowl Night, when Harry Shum Jr. and his professional dance partner, Jenna Johnson, performed a samba to “Yeah!” by Usher featuring Lil Jon and Ludacris. At one point, some members of the dance troupe hoisted Shum into the air.

After the performance, judge Carrie Ann Inaba told Shum and Johnson that their routine included a “lift,” which is not allowed in traditional samba.

When Johnson questioned the decision, Inaba read him the definition.

“‘A lift is any movement in which one of the dancers lifts both feet off the ground at the same time with the help or support of their partner,'” Inaba said before adding, “Yes, a lift.”

Inaba still gave the pair an 8 out of 10, leading fans to question the point of the judge’s terse comment.

Johnson later explained that she thought the lifting rule only applied to lead performers, not backup dancers.

“You know what, it’s hard, because usually when someone asks for help, it’s when your partner picks you up,” Johnson said. Additional after the episode. “But I absolutely hear Carrie Ann. She’s a judge for a reason. She’s going to do her job, I’m going to do mine. I’m going to take the feedback on board.”

The Instagram post

The next day, Valentin Chmerkovskiy, Johnson’s husband and professional dancer associated with Jenna Dewan, took to Instagram to express his displeasure with Inaba by referencing what Will Smith said to Chris Rock before his infamous slap at the 2022 Oscars.

“You almost saw Fresh Prince walk into the ballroom last night,” Chmerkovskiy wrote, a nod to the sitcom character that catapulted Smith’s career.

The suspension

Saturday, BBC Studios, which produces Dancing with the starsannounced it was suspending Chmerkovskiy for a week, saying in a statement that “the well-being of everyone who works on ‘the series’ is non-negotiable.”

“Val’s social media post was inappropriate and does not reflect the values ​​or standards expected of anyone connected to the show,” the statement said. “As a result, he will not be appearing on next week’s show.”

According to the Hollywood ReporterAlan Bersten — who was eliminated earlier this season after competing with Giada De Laurentiis — will replace Chmerkovskiy as Dewan’s professional dance partner on the next episode, airing Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET.

The excuses

Chmerkovskiy later apologized for the post that triggered his suspension – the first since Dancing with the stars history.

“At a time when my instinct was to defend my wife, I made the poor decision to reference a meme to ‘keep my wife’s name’ out of the conversation, without thinking about what else that reference might imply, which was truly never my intention,” he said in a statement posted to Instagram. “Carrie Ann certainly didn’t deserve to be caught in the middle of my bad judgment, and I hate that she was.”

He added, “The last thing I want is to become a distraction from an important week or the incredible work my dance partner Jenna Dewan is doing. Please send lots of love to Carrie Ann, Jenna and the entire DWTS family during the book signing party. I will be watching and cheering for everyone!”