Dancing With the Stars pro Val Chmerkovskiy has publicly thanked Alan Bersten for filling in for him amid a one-week suspension.
“Thank you for stepping in and doing such an amazing job,” Chmerkovskiy, 40, commented on a Tuesday, October 20, Instagram post shared by Bersten, 32, that paid tribute to Chmerkovskiy’s season 35 partner, Jenna Dewan.
“Jenna looks so good and most importantly happy,” Chmerkovskiy continued before cheekily addressing online rumors suggesting he had unfollowed multiple DWTS personalities in light of his suspension: “You’re my new favorite follow 😉.”
The unsubstantiated rumors circled via Reddit, but fans argued Chmerkovskiy didn’t follow every DWTS personality to begin with.
Dancing With the Stars pro Alan Bersten is teasing his performance with Jenna Dewan for Dedication Night after her partner Val Chmerkovskiy’s suspension. “I am so honored to be stepping in and dancing with @jennadewan,” Bersten, 32, wrote via Instagram on Tuesday, October 20, sharing photos of the pair on the ballroom floor with Dewan’s […]
The token of gratitude came just hours after judge Carrie Ann Inaba broke her silence over Chmerkovskiy sitting out of Tuesday’s Dedication Night episode for making controversial comments directed at Inaba, 58. (During the October 13 episode, Inaba criticized Chmerkovskiy’s wife and fellow pro, Jenna Johnson, for an illegal lift, which led to Chmerkovskiy making a since-deleted reference to going “Fresh Prince” on the longtime judge.)
“Looking forward to a heartfelt night of dedications,” Inaba wrote via Instagram alongside a black-and-white photo of the show’s ballroom floor. “Always and forever team Dancing With the Stars.”
Val Chmerkovskiy Ian Maule/Getty Images
Bersten’s Instagram tribute avoided discussion of the week’s drama, instead celebrating Dewan, 45, and her mom, Nancy Smith, who appeared on the show amid her daughter’s Viennese waltz dedication.
“I am so honored to be stepping in and dancing with @jennadewan you are such a light and it’s so beautiful to see you and your mom share the floor,” Bersten gushed, attracting praise from fans including girlfriend Emma Slater, who left four red heart emojis for her man.
Two days prior, Slater, 37, also publicly stood up for Bersten online, clapping back at a fan who questioned why he was chosen to step in for Chmerkovskiy this week. “Yeah that’s what happens, we all step in for each other,” Slater wrote on a TikTok clip at the time.
Alan Bersten Monica Schipper/Getty Images
Us confirmed on Saturday, October 17, that Bersten, who was previously eliminated from season 35 with partner Giada De Laurentiis, would be dancing with Dewan in Chmerkovskiy’s place.
Ahead of Tuesday’s show, Chmerkovskiy issued an apology for his comments. “I want to apologize from the bottom of my heart for my recent post,” he wrote via his Instagram Stories on Thursday, October 15. “I have reached out to Carrie Ann to apologize directly and personally and I also want to apologize publicly as I understand my words affect so many outside our internal DWTS family. I should never have made the reference that I did and I deeply regret it. I recognize that I am in a fortunate position to have a platform and to be a role model to some, and I need to treat that with more care by actively pausing to think before I post to ensure what I am sharing aligns with who I am, and who I want to be for you all.”
Former Dancing With the Stars pro Gleb Savchenko has thoughts about Alan Bersten stepping in for Val Chmerkovskiy during his Dedication Night suspension. “Alan, I think he’s Alan. I mean, he’s just not up to the level of dancing, like, period,” Savchenko, 43, said during a recent TikTok livestream screen-recorded by fans. “[The] quality, the […]
A spokesperson for BBC Studios later said in a statement to Us: “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. As a result, he will not participate in next week’s show.”
