The last week of the 2026 TV schedule was full of Dancing with the Stars drama. Following comments Carrie Ann Inaba made about a lift in Jenna Johnson and Harry Shum Jr.’s Super Bowl night dance, Johnson’s husband and pro, Val Chmerkovskiy, made a comment toward the judge that got him suspended. So, as Alan Bersten stepped in for him this week, lots of discourse about all this ensued, and I fell down the rabbit hole.
Liftgate And What Got Val Suspended
Let’s take it back to Super Bowl night and the event the internet has dubbed “Liftgate.” After Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson performed a Samba that included the troupe lifting the Glee actor, Carrie Ann Inaba called out the lift. The pro was shocked by the callout, and many online were upset about it. Amid all this, Val Chmerkovskiy posted a now-deleted TikTok (via Page Six) that said:
You almost saw Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night.
This reference to when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars is what got Val suspended. He publicly apologized to the judge for what he said, and reportedly, Inaba went to the producers to say she wanted something done about this. On the Saturday before Dedication Night, it was reported that the pro had been suspended for one episode. In response to that, he wrote on his IG Story (via Us Weekly):
Hi everyone. As you may have seen in the news, I won’t be in the ballroom this week. 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.
In the same statement, he apologized to Carrie Ann again, saying she “didn’t deserve to get caught in the middle of [his] bad judgment.” He also asked fans to send their love to the judge, his partner Jenna Dewan and “the whole DWTS family.”
How Val's Suspension Impacted Dedication Night
With Val out, his partner, Jenna Dewan, needed a pro to dance with. So, Alan Bersten, who was eliminated earlier in the season, stepped in to help.
During Dedication Night, Val’s absence was briefly addressed, and during an interview with GMA after the show, the Step Up star shared that she and Alan had two-and-a-half days to prepare for their Viennese waltz. However, the number dedicated to Dewan’s mom, Nancy, went very well, and The Rookie actress got her first ten.
Meanwhile, Val was at home watching, as his wife, Jenna Johnson, shared during an interview with ET:
Yes, he is. He’s watching from home. He’s so proud of us and just so proud of everyone.
Val was also active on social media, proving that even though he wasn’t in the ballroom, he was still supporting his partner.
How Val And Alan Responded To The Whole Situation
When it was announced that Alan would step in for Val, the intense comments surrounding the suspension amplified. People were wondering if there was any drama between the pros, and many were suspicious about the fact that Val didn’t follow Alan on Instagram. In response to that, Val commented on Alan’s post about performing with Dewan:
Thank you for stepping in and doing such an amazing job. Jenna looks so good and most importantly happy. You’re my new favorite follow 😉
I can confirm that Val does follow Alan on Instagram.
Anyway, with that out of the way, Val commented on Jenna Dewan and Alan’s performance, too, simply writing in the comments on the show’s post about it:
Perfection ❤️
To further prove that the two guys are on good terms, Alan also spoke about how he worked with Val amid his suspension during an interview with GMA:
Val was very, obviously, Jenna is Val's partner, so we were in communication. He was like, 'Change whatever you want, do whatever you want, just enjoy.' So we had a lot of back and forth.
Well, now that that’s all cleared up, it would seem it’s time to get back to business as usual.
What’s Next For Val?
Val will be back for the next episode, according to THR. We knew he had a one-episode suspension, and that has held true, as the outlet reported that the pro is back in rehearsals. That means he’ll be by Jenna Dewan’s side for the Halloween episode.
So, it seems everything is cleared up now, and the show is getting back to normal. To see Val Chmerkovskiy back in the ballroom, you can watch Dancing with the Stars on Tuesday, October 27 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC or with a Disney+ subscription.
