DWTS Suspends Val Chmerkovskiy After Social Media Post

A dispute over dance rules on ABC's Dancing With the Stars has resulted in a one-week suspension for professional dancer Val Chmerkovskiy after he posted a social media message referencing Will Smith's 2022 Oscars altercation with Chris Rock. BBC Studios, which produces the competition, announced the disciplinary action Saturday after the post targeted judge Carrie Ann Inaba following criticism of a routine performed by Chmerkovskiy's wife, Jenna Johnson.

The suspension means Chmerkovskiy will miss the upcoming Dedication Night episode. According to ABC7 and Yahoo News, professional dancer Alan Bersten will replace him as the partner of actress Jenna Dewan for the broadcast scheduled for Tuesday at 8 p.m. Eastern Time on ABC.

The dispute originated during the show's Oct. 13 Super Bowl Night episode, when Johnson and actor Harry Shum Jr. performed a samba to Usher's song Yeah!, featuring Lil Jon and Ludacris. During the routine, members of the dance troupe lifted Shum into the air, prompting Inaba to flag the move as a violation of traditional samba rules.

Inaba explained the ruling by defining a lift as a movement in which a dancer has both feet off the floor simultaneously with assistance or support from a partner. She then reiterated her decision, although the pair still received an 8 out of 10 from her.

Johnson subsequently acknowledged the judge's role and said she had understood the restriction to apply to the principal dance partners rather than backup performers. Her husband responded the following day with a social media post that referenced Smith's confrontation with Rock at the 2022 Academy Awards.

Chmerkovskiy's now-deleted post appeared on social media after the criticism of Johnson's routine. Yahoo News reported that he wrote, "You almost saw Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night," invoking the television character that helped establish Smith's career.

BBC Studios explained its decision to suspend the dancer in a statement released Saturday.

"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 with the show. As a result, he will not participate in next week's show," BBC Studios said.

The production company also confirmed that Dewan knew about the partner change and had remained professional and respectful throughout the process, according to ABC7.

Chmerkovskiy later apologized for the post, explaining that he had reacted instinctively while attempting to defend his wife. He acknowledged that the reference could carry implications he had not considered when publishing it.

"In a moment where my instinct was to defend my wife, I made a poor decision to reference a meme to 'keep my wife's name' out of the conversation, without stopping to think through what else that reference could imply, which was genuinely never my intention," Chmerkovskiy said in his apology.

He also addressed the impact on Inaba, who had been at the center of the dispute following her judging decision.

"Carrie Ann certainly didn't deserve to get caught in the middle of my bad judgment, and I hate that she was," Chmerkovskiy said.

Chmerkovskiy had been partnered with Dewan during the competition, while Johnson was dancing with Shum. The upcoming episode will feature Bersten, who was eliminated in Week 3, as Dewan's temporary partner during Chmerkovskiy's suspension.

Dancing With the Stars airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. Eastern Time on ABC and streams on Disney+. Episodes become available on Hulu the following day, according to ABC7.