LOS ANGELES — “Dancing with the Stars” fans will notice pro dancer Val Chmerkovskiy missing from this week’s show.
That’s because the production has suspended Chmerkovskiy after an “inappropriate” social media post he made about judge Carrie Ann Inaba.
His celebrity partner, actress Jenna Dewan, will instead dance with Alan Bersten.
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“The well-being of everyone who works on Dancing with the Stars is non-negotiable,” show producer BBC Studios 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.”
Chmerkovskiy made comments about Inaba after her judging critique about his wife and fellow DWTS pro Jenna Johnson. Inaba said that Johnson incorporated a lift into her routine with actor Harry Shum Jr. during the “Super Bowl Week” performance.
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In one of his posts, Chmerkovskiy wrote “You almost saw the Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night,” referencing the Will Smith-Chris Rock slap from the 2022 Oscars, People reported.
He later deleted the post and issued an updated statement.
“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 a later post on social media. “Carrie Ann certainly didn’t deserve to get caught in the middle of my bad judgment, and I hate that she was.”
It’s unclear how long the suspension will last.
“Dancing with the Stars” airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on WSB-TV.
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