Posted on Oct 21, 2026 UTC

After Dancing With the Stars pro Val Chmerkovskiy was suspended for making a controversial remark about female judge Carrie Ann Inaba, viewers were curious to see how the show would address his absence. Well, Tuesday night's episode has officially aired, and the show's VERY brief acknowledgment of the situation is getting people talking.

For anyone who missed it, Val was suspended for one week after sharing a since-deleted social media post saying viewers "almost saw Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night," seemingly referencing Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars. You can read more about why he said this and the public's reaction here .

Val subsequently apologized, and Alan Bersten was brought in to replace him as Jenna Dewan's professional dance partner for the show's highly anticipated Dedication Night on Oct. 20.…