DWTS’ Val Chmerkovskiy Apologizes to Jenna Dewan on Show

“To lead with kindness. To give people grace,” she continued. “To be strong without losing your softness. To keep your heart open, even when life doesn’t go quite the way you imagined.”

Indeed she carried on even after Chmerkovskiy was suspended from DWTS for one week after he alluded to the infamous Oscars moment between Will Smith and Chris Rock on his TikTok status following the awkward interaction between his wife Jenna Johnson and Inaba on the Oct. 13 episode. 

And while many interpreted the moment as a reference to Smith slapping Rock, Chmerkovskiy explained that was a misstep and he was instead referring to Smith’s comment of, “Keep my wife’s name out your f–king mouth.”

“As you may have seen in the news, I won’t be in the ballroom this week,” he wrote on his Instagram Stories Oct. 17. “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.”

“Carrie Ann certainly didn’t deserve to get caught in the middle of my bad judgment, and I hate that she was,” the 40-year-old continued. “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.”

The three-time Mirrorball champ noted he didn’t want to throw off anyone’s routine, asking that everyone send love to Inaba, Dewan and “the whole DWTS family” during Dedication Night.

For a look at all the stars hoping to put their best foot forward on this season of Dancing With the Stars, keep reading.