When Val Chmerkovskiy isn’t nailing choreo in the Dancing With the Stars ballroom, the pro is most likely stirring the pot behind the scenes. After Mariah Carey Night’s BraidGate, Val is at the center of more controversy as he defends his wife, Jenna Johnson, from Carrie Ann Inaba’s harsh critiques. After Carrie Ann gave Jenna and Harry Shum Jr.’s Super Bowl Night performance some stern feedback, Val posted a since-deleted TikTok status that seemingly referenced Will Smith’s infamous slap at the 2022 Oscars.
While fans agreed that Carrie Ann’s feedback was harsh, they called Val out for the violent undertones of his post, which seemingly insinuated that he would have hit her as Will Smith hit Chris Rock while defending Jada Pinkett-Smith at the Oscars. Val took down the Oscars slap post amid the backlash, but he still defended Jenna with another comment under a different post that showed his facial expressions as she received Carrie Ann’s feedback. Shes trippin talking to her like that,” he wrote.
He’s not the only pro siding with Jenna, either. His brother, Maks Chmerkovskiy, also came to her defense on The Viall Files podcast as he urged Carrie Ann to “get some consistency.” “She goes and starts reading off the rulebook, but then that same rulebook that’s applicable in ballroom with lifts is only applicable to a couple dancing,” Maks said (per Us Weekly). The point is: Carrie Ann, get some consistency,” he added.
That’s Dancing With the Stars creative direction, and you should complain to the creative director.” Maks’ wife and fellow DWTS pro, Peta Murgatroyd, backed Jenna up and agreed that the rule would have been “confusing” for her, too. Their comments come after the longtime judge alleged that Jenna and Harry had violated the DWTS rulebook with a lift during their samba routine. But I absolutely hear Carrie Ann.” In the end, there’s no bad blood between the pro and judge, as Jenna said, “She’s a judge for a reason.
She’s gonna do her job, I’m gonna do mine. I’m gonna take the feedback.”
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