"Dancing With The Stars" Pro Val Chmerkovskiy Benched for This Week's Upcoming "Dedication Night" Episode

After a recent controversial post responding to a tense moment on the last Dancing With The Stars, pro Val Chmerkovskiy will not be dancing with his partner Jenna Dewan in the upcoming episode.

What's Happening:

• After a recent incident that left the ballroom and reared its head on social media, Dancing With The Stars ballroom pro Val Chmerkovskiy will not be participating in the upcoming episode of the hit ABC unscripted competition series, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
• Set to air on Tuesday, October 20, Dancing With The Stars will go on without Chmerkovskiy, after he made controversial remarks on social media that were made responding to a high-profile moment between Val's wife, pro Jenna Johnson and judge Carrie Ann Inaba.
• BBC Studios, the production company behind the hit series, shared a statement saying, "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."
• This season, Chmerkovskiy has been doing well with celebrity partner Jenna Dewan, typically scoring among the top scores each week.

A Bit of Background:

• Fans may recall an incident during the Super Bowl Night broadcast of the hit series on October 13, where pro Jenna Johnson and celebrity partner Harry Shum were receiving their critique for their dance when judge Carrie Ann Inaba got quite stern (to say the least) and referenced the definition of a "lift" - accusing the duo of having included one in their performance. The critique was stern and arguably aggressive, even with fellow judge Derek Hough following it with stunned silence and a quip, "Dang, I feel like I got told off!"

• Johnson's husband, pro Val Chmerkovskiy, took to social media on Wednesday after the episode and said in a now-deleted post on TikTok, "You almost saw Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night.”
• This is likely a not-so-subtle reference to an incident at the 94th Academy Awards in 2022 where The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air star Will Smith approached the stage and physically assaulted (via slap) presenter Chris Rock after he made jokes about Smith's wife, actress Jada Pinkett Smith.
• Judge Carrie Ann Inaba saw the post via PageSix and shared a screenshot with the comment, "So this is what we're doing now?"

Val's Apology:

• On Thursday, Val took to Instagram with a statement, apologizing to the longtime Dancing With the Stars judge and the loyal Dancing With The Stars fans.
• He said: “I want to apologize from the bottom of my heart for my recent post. I have reached out to Carrie Ann to apologize directly and personally, and I also want to apologize publicly as I understand my words affect so many outside of our internal DWTS family. I should have never made the reference that I did and I deeply regret it. I recognize that I am in a fortunate position to have a platform and to be a role model to some, and I need to treat that with more care by actively pausing to think before I post to ensure what I am sharing aligns with who I am, and who I want to be for you all.”

The Fate of Jenna Dewan:

• Fans of celebrity contestant Jenna Dewan need not worry - she will still get to compete and is still reliant on your votes for her.
• However, she will now be paired with pro Alan Bersten for the week, who was eliminated earlier this season when his partner, celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis, did not secure enough votes to proceed in the competition.
• This upcoming episode on October 20 is Dedication Night, and Dewan is reportedly aware of Val's removal and is remaining professional during the process, sticking with the plan of dedicating her dance to her mother during the upcoming episode.
• As of right now, it looks like Val's suspension is only for this week's episode and he will likely return with partner Jenna Dewan during the October 27 episode of the hit reality competition series - as long as Dewan gets enough votes to survive this week's elimination.
• The next episode of Dancing With The Stars will air live on Tuesday, October 20 at 8:00 PM ET on ABC and on Disney+.