DWTS Suspends Val, Bersten Set to Replace Him

Val Chmerkovskiy will miss Dancing With the Stars Dedication Night on Oct. 20 in the first one-week pro suspension in show history. After Carrie Ann Inaba critiqued his wife Jenna Johnson's samba lift, he posted and deleted, "You almost saw the Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night," referencing Will Smith's 2022 Oscars slap. BBC Studios said per Deadline that "the well-being of everyone who works on Dancing with the Stars is non-negotiable." Chmerkovskiy, 40, apologized to Inaba, 58, on Oct. 15 and announced the sit-out on Instagram Stories on Oct. 17, writing that he made "a poor decision to reference a meme" and that the implication "was genuinely never my intention." He asked fans to "send Carrie Ann, Jenna, and the whole DWTS family lots of love during Dedication Night." Jenna Dewan, 45, will dance a Viennese waltz to "Unchained Melody" with Alan Bersten, 32, for her mother Nancy. There is no factual dispute among rated outlets—only differing emphasis. Left-rated coverage leads with Dewan's Bersten pairing and mother dedication; the right-rated headline frames a major setback for Dewan and Chmerkovskiy. The episode airs Oct. 20 at 8 p.m. EST/PST on ABC and Disney+.