Val Chmerkovskiy sat out the October 20 episode of “Dancing With the Stars” over a “Fresh Prince” post, as his reference to Will Smith’s Oscars slap sparked backlash after a clash over his wife’s dance.
BBC Studios, which makes the show, barred the pro dancer for one week on October 17. He had taken aim at judge Carrie Ann Inaba. She had found fault with a dance by his wife, Jenna Johnson, and her partner, Harry Shum Jr. The line was seen as a nod to Smith’s 2022 Oscars slap of Chris Rock. Val said he meant the meme about keeping his wife’s name out of the discussion, not what else those words might imply. His response did not spare him a week on the bench. Jenna Dewan, his partner on the show, danced with Alan Bersten instead. Bersten had already been knocked out of the contest with his own partner. It all began with Harry and Johnson’s samba to Usher’s “Yeah!” featuring Lil Jon and Ludacris during Super Bowl Night.
Two other dancers had helped Harry leave the floor for a backflip. Johnson said that, in most lift calls, one of the main partners had lifted the other. Still, she accepted that Inaba had a job to do. The pair earned 33 out of 40. Val said he was sorry and had reached out to her directly. After he was barred from the show, he said his bid to defend his wife had been a bad call.
Inaba praised the routine’s energy but questioned whether it included enough traditional samba content and called out a lift, which is prohibited in the dance style. Johnson appeared surprised by the call, prompting a tense exchange as Inaba explained the rule. The pair ultimately earned 33 out of 40 points for the performance. The criticism continued to make waves after the show. Johnson later shared on Instagram Stories that she had “a good cry” while reading supportive messages from fans. The situation also became part of a larger controversy involving Johnson’s husband and fellow DWTS pro Val Chmerkovskiy, who was suspended for one week after posting a since-deleted social media comment aimed at Inaba.
While neither Johnson nor Inaba has publicly described the embrace as a resolution to their earlier disagreement, the moment offered fans a welcome reminder that a tense exchange on live television does not necessarily define the relationships behind the scenes.