Val Chmerkovskiy sparked controversy in the “Dancing With the Stars” fandom with a cryptic social media move.
The day after the show’s first-ever “Super Bowl Night,” the pro dancer posted a heated sentiment seemingly referencing Will Smith’s infamous 2022 Oscars slap after Carrie Ann Inaba’s harsh critique of wife Jenna Johnson the previous evening.
“You almost saw Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night,” Chmerkovskiy’s since-deleted TikTok status read, per a screenshot shared by a follower in the comments of a video he shared Wednesday featuring him and his celebrity partner, “Step Up” star Jenna Dewan.
“What do you mean by this?” the fan queried under the comment alongside a cringing emoji.
Others responded, with one person writing, “Bro that joke ain’t it” and another chiming in, “Sounds like a threat to me!!”
Yet another posited that the apparent status meant “basically that he would hit [Inaba].”
The comment featuring Chmerkovskiy’s TikTok status appears to have since been either deleted or removed at the time of this article’s publication.
A Reddit thread also had fans sounding off on what Chmerkovskiy could have meant with his post, with many linking it to Smith slapping Chris Rock after the comedian made a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, onstage during the ceremony.
The violent outburst got Smith banned from all Academy events for 10 years as punishment.
One netizen called Chmerkovskiy “disgusting” for making the comment, while another said the pro “essentially threatening violence … should be a fireable offense.”
Meanwhile, Chmerkovskiy took aim at Inaba in the comments under a separate TikTok video, writing, “Puts some respect on her name. Shes trippin talking to her like that.”
The clip, which featured Johnson and her celebrity partner, “Glee” star Harry Shum Jr., getting their scores from the judges, showed Chmerkovskiy wildly gesturing in disagreement as Inaba and fellow judges Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli gave them 8’s for their samba to “Yeah!” by Usher.
He only cheered when guest judge Joe Buck gave the duo a 9, bringing their total score to 33/40.
“I love how he defends his wife,” one person wrote in the comments, while another added, “Val be like: that’s my wife don’t mess with her Carrie Ann.”
Reps for ABC, Chermkovskiy, Johnson and Inaba did not immediately respond to Page Six’s requests for comment Wednesday evening.
Johnson and Inaba faced off in an intense exchange while the judges gave their feedback on the routine she and Shum Jr. delivered Tuesday night, the latest episode of Season 35.
Inaba asserted that she “loved every minute” of the performance, but told the “Grey’s Anatomy” star he should have “put more content in [his] dances.”
“And there was a lift,” she added, to which Johnson responded, “A lift?”
“Yeah it was a lift,” Inaba said, proceeding to read from a sheet of paper that “a lift is any movement during which one of the dancers has both feet off the floor at the same time with the assistance or support of their partner” as the audience fell quiet.
When Johnson and Shum Jr. went up to the skybox to receive their scores, co-host Julianne Hough asked the pro dancer how she felt about Inaba’s criticism.
“I totally understand. I thought it was if you lifted your partner,” Johnson said. “But I totally hear Carrie Ann. I will take it. Sure.”
“Dancing with the Stars” airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and streams on Disney+.
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