Maksim Chmerkovskiy has a message for “DWTS ”fans after controversy with his brother Val
(L) Maks Chmerkovskiy; (R) Val ChmerkovskiyCredit: Victoria Sirakova/Getty; Ian Maule/GettyKey Points
Maks Chmerkovskiy thinks “everybody can move on” from his brother Val’s DWTS drama.
Pro Val was suspended this week after making a heated comment toward judge Carrie Ann Inaba.
Fellow pro Alan Bersten stepped in for Val and performed with his celebrity partner, Jenna Dewan.
What’s done is done in Maksim “Maks” Chmerkovskiy’s eyes.
The former Dancing With the Stars pro and brother of season 35 dancer Val Chmerkovskiy stated that it’s time to move on from the controversy surrounding Val and judge Carrie Ann Inaba.
Val sat out of the competition as punishment for making a heated comment directed at Inaba, and fellow pro Alan Bersten stepped in to perform on “Dedication Night” with his celebrity partner, Jenna Dewan.
Maks insisted that, now, all is good and the show can go on.
“I mean, Alan stepped in for me at some point as well, so I’m very familiar with Alan stepping in,” Maks told Us Weekly at the 2026 Dancers Against Cancer’s Gala of the Stars in Los Angeles on Thursday, Oct. 22. “He did a great job. I think everybody can move on.”
The saga all began last week after Inaba critiqued Val’s wife and fellow pro Jenna Johnson’s routine with Harry Shum Jr. Inaba said Johnson needed to “put more content” in her dances and called her out for an illegal lift in the “Super Bowl Night” samba to “Yeah!” by Usher featuring Lil Jon and Ludacris.
Val didn’t agree with Inaba’s assessment and took to social media to express his feelings. In the comments section of a TikTok clip of Johnson and Shum getting their scores, Val wrote, “Puts some respect on her name. Shes trippin talking to her like that.” He then added the following text on a TikTok story, per PEOPLE: “You almost saw Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night.”
That comment invoked Will Smith’s notorious 2022 Oscars moment when he slapped host Chris Rock for making a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. At the time, Smith yelled, “Get my wife’s name out of your f--- ing mouth.”
Inaba took offense to Val’s words, questioning in a now-deleted social media post, “So this is what we are doing now?”
Val apologized shortly after the scandal took off, explaining that he spoke to Inaba and now “understand[s] my words affect so many outside of our internal DWTS family. I should have never made the reference that I did and I deeply regret it.”
Still, ABC and BBC Studios decided to suspend Val from week 6’s “Dedication Night” as the “well-being of everyone who works on Dancing with the Stars is non-negotiable.” Their statement continued: “Val’s social media post was inappropriate and does not reflect the values or standards expected of anyone connected with the show.”
Bersten stepped in for Val and performed a touching Viennese waltz with actress Dewan to The Righteous Brothers’ “Unchained Melody” alongside her mom, Nancy. They earned a 37 out of 40 for their routine, and even scored their first 10 from Inaba.
Val Chmerkovskiy and Jenna Dewan on ‘Dancing with the Stars’Credit: ABC
When asked by Good Morning America how she handled everything amid the drama with Val, Dewan said, “I learned this early on in life, but also especially in our business, that the show must go on.”
She continued, “Sometimes unexpected things happen and you have to pivot, and then your job is to make the best of that. Your mental game is what you’re in control of and I walked in and Alan was just... he really stepped up.”
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Bersten said he was in contact with Val throughout rehearsals with Dewan and all went smoothly.
“Obviously, Jenna is Val’s partner and so we were in communication,” Bersten told GMA of Val. “He was like, ‘Change whatever you want, do whatever you want, just enjoy.’ So we had a lot of back-and-forth.”
As for Val, he cheered the pair on from home on Tuesday, and was seen back on set for prep for “Horror Movie Night” with Dewan Wednesday. They will dance an Argentine tango to “Uninvited” by Damned Anthem & Kendra Dantes.
New episodes of Dancing With the Stars season 35 air on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and Disney+.
Source: Entertainment