Val Chmerkovskiy has been suspended from “Dancing With the Stars” after appearing to reference Will Smith’s infamous Oscars slap in a since-deleted social media post defending his wife, fellow pro dancer Jenna Johnson.
The professional dancer, 40, will miss Tuesday’s “Dedication Night” episode, marking the first known suspension of a professional dancer in the show’s history, according to ABC.
BBC Studios, which produces the ABC dance competition, confirmed the disciplinary action on Saturday.
“The well-being of everyone who works on ‘Dancing with the Stars’ is non-negotiable,” the company said in a statement. “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.”
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The controversy began after Carrie Ann Inaba criticized Johnson and her celebrity dance partner, actor Harry Shum Jr., during “Super Bowl Night” last week. Inaba called out a lift in the couple’s samba routine and even read the definition of a lift during her critique.
Val, who is married to Johnson, appeared to defend her in a TikTok post that read, “You almost saw the Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night.” The comment was widely viewed as a reference to Smith slapping comedian Chris Rock during the 2022 Academy Awards.
The post was later deleted, and Val apologized to Inaba publicly and privately.
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“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,” he wrote on his Instagram Stories.
“Carrie Ann certainly didn’t deserve to get caught in the middle of my bad judgment, and I hate that she was,” he added.
Val also said he did not want the controversy to overshadow the upcoming episode or distract from his celebrity partner, Jenna Dewan.
“The last thing I want is to become a distraction from an important week or from the incredible work my dance partner Jenna Dewan is putting in,” he wrote. “Please send Carrie Ann, Jenna, and the whole ‘DWTS’ family lots of love during Dedication Night. I’ll be watching and cheering everyone on!!”
Dewan will temporarily dance with pro Alan Bersten, who was eliminated from the competition during Week 2 alongside his celebrity partner, Giada De Laurentiis.