Val Chmerkovskiy will not participate in the next episode of “Dancing With The Stars.”
The show announced Oct. 17 that Chmerkovskiy, a competitive professional who is currently teamed with actress Jenna Dewan, would be suspended for a week.
This comes after Chmerkovskiy found himself in a sticky situation last week when he posted a status on TikTok that appeared to reference Will Smith’s infamous altercation with Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars. The pro had responded to harsh criticism that judge Carrie Ann Inaba leveled at his wife, fellow pro Jenna Johnson, who is teamed with actor Harry Shum Jr.
“You almost saw Fresh Prince walk into the ballroom last night,” Chmerkovskiy wrote in the since-deleted status seen by NBC News.
In a statement sent to NBC News, BBC Studios, the production company behind “DWTS,” said that “the well-being of everyone who works on Dancing with the Stars 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.”
Chmerkovskiy responded to the news of his suspension by posting an apology on his Instagram Story. The dancer wrote that he initially intended to “defend my wife.”
“I made the poor decision to reference a meme to ‘keep my wife’s name’ out of the conversation, without stopping to think about what else that reference might imply, which was really never my intention,” he wrote, referencing Smith’s words to Rock amid the Oscars argument, “Keep my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth.”
Chmerkovskiy added: “Carrie Ann certainly didn’t deserve to be caught in the middle of my poor judgment, and I hate that she was.”
He also had some good wishes for the participants of the show.
“Please send lots of love to Carrie Ann, Jenna and the entire DWTS family on Dedication Night,” he wrote. “I’m going to watch and cheer for everyone!!”
Inaba has not publicly responded to Chmerkovskiy’s apology or suspension.
Instead of performing with Chmerkovskiy, Dewan will dance with pro Alan Bersten in a number dedicated to his mother.
Things got heated during the Oct. 13 episode of “DWTS” when Inaba accused Johnson of incorporating a lift into her samba routine with Shum. The Latin dance style traditionally prohibits movement – something the judge has enforced in the past.
While Johnson, looking confused, asked: “Raise? » Inaba returned with an immediate answer.
“An elevator is, I just need to say it,” she said before reading from a sheet of paper with the definition printed out. “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. Yeah. Lift.”
Later in the episode, Johnson seemed to take the criticism well.
“I’ll take it, of course,” she said.
Chmerkovskiy has previously apologized for his status on TikTok. On October 15, he posted on his Instagram Story that he had reached out to Inaba directly to apologize.
“I recognize that I am fortunate to have a platform and to be a role model to some, and I need to treat this with more care by actively stopping to think before I post to make sure what I share is true to who I am and who I want to be for all of you,” he wrote in the Instagram Story.
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