Val Chmerkovskiy Set to Return to Dancing With the Stars After One-Episode Suspension

Val Chmerkovskiy is heading back to Dancing With the Stars after missing one episode over a social media post. The Hollywood Reporter reported on 21 October 2026 that he was back in rehearsals and due on the ballroom floor next week, for the horror-themed episode.

The trouble started with a TikTok Story. After judge Carrie Ann Inaba commented on his wife, Jenna Johnson's, samba on the Super Bowl Night episode, Chmerkovskiy posted: "You almost saw Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night." The line appeared to refer to Will Smith's slap at the 2022 Oscars, a moment that has been widely discussed ever since.

Inaba answered on Instagram with a single question: "So this is what we are doing now?" Chmerkovskiy then apologised to her in an Instagram statement.

The show's production company, BBC Studios, announced the suspension. It said the post was inappropriate and that he would not take part in the following week's show. Co-host Alfonso Ribeiro opened the Dedication Night episode by saying, "Val is not with us this week." Chmerkovskiy's celebrity partner, actress Jenna Dewan, performed that night with fellow pro Alan Bersten instead.

Dewan and Bersten earned 37 out of 40 from the judges for a Viennese waltz, a slow, sweeping ballroom style, to "Unchained Melody." Dewan danced it in honour of her mother.

Chmerkovskiy and Dewan are paired for the rest of the season. BBC Studios and ABC declined to comment on his return.

For a show that is broadcast live each week, a one-episode gap is a small change to the schedule. It is also a reminder that the pros and celebrities who dance each week are only part of a larger crew, and that the production goes on around any single absence.