‘DWTS’ pro Gleb Savchenko slams Carrie Ann Inaba’s judging, backs suspended Val Chmerkovskiy - Page Six

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"Dancing with the Stars" pro Val Chmerkovskiy will miss next week's episode after a controversial social media remark about Carrie Ann Inaba that seemed to reference Will Smith's Oscars slap. The longtime choreographer, who joined as a pro dancer for the ABC reality competition series in Season 13 in 2011, has been suspended from Season 35, the show's production company BBC Studios announced Oct. 17. The statement confirmed he will not appear in the Oct. 20 episode, which is themed Dedication Night. "The well-being of everyone who works on Dancing With the Stars is non-negotiable," BBC Studios said in a statement shared with The Hollywood Reporter. "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. "His Season 35 partner Jenna Dewan will be paired with pro Alan Bersten in the Oct. 20 episode, according to The Hollywood Reporter, after Bersten was eliminated earlier this season alongside Giada De Laurentiis. USA TODAY has reached out to ABC for comment.

“Dancing With the Stars” is benching Val Chmerkovskiy after his recent joke about judge Carrie Ann Inaba. “The well-being of everyone who works on ‘Dancing with the Stars’ is non-negotiable. Val’s social media post was inappropriate and does not reflect the values or standards expected of anyone connected with the show,” BBC Studios said in a statement on Saturday. “As a result, he will not participate in next week’s show.”

Wondering what the vibes are like behind the scenes on Dancing With the Stars amid Val Chmerkovskiy being benched for a week? Apparently, producers are “furious,” and Val had to apologize to Carrie Ann Inaba for his “Oscar Slap” comment in order to keep his job. “He won’t be [fired], no,” a source tells The Sun. “But producers on the show encouraged him to save face by making an apology to her. He doubled down on the joke at first, and once the backlash got as loud as it did, he had a talking-to and did it to save his job.”Meanwhile, Carrie Ann is still feeling “like she’s walking on eggshells” and the insider says, “What Val said made it so she doesn’t know how to move forward after this. She stands by what she said to Jenna; she was being constructive. Making that kind of joke was a shock to Carrie Ann.”Reminder: Val made an “Oscar Slap” reference in the aftermath of Carrie Ann criticizing Val’s wife Jenna Johnson for a rule-breaking lift.

Val Chmerkovskiy is facing a weeklong suspension from Dancing with the Stars over his “Oscar Slap” comment aimed at Carrie Ann Inaba. And due to him sitting this week out, Jenna Dewan has been temporarily partnered with Alan Bersten—who was eliminated earlier this season along with his celeb partner Giada de Laurentiis. While Jenna hasn’t said anything about Val specifically, she and Alan cheerfully popped up on the DWTS Instagram account, where Jenna said “Hi everybody. It’s Dedication Night and we are dancing a Viennese waltz to ‘Unchained Melody’ by the Righteous Brothers, the greatest, most romantic song ever.”Jenna added that she was “so excited” about the dance, while Alan smiled enthusiastically (and also didn’t mention anything about Val). A source recently told Variety that “Jenna Dewan is aware and has continued to be a true professional and respectful of the process.