‘DWTS’ names Val Chmerkovskiy’s replacement as Jenna gets new partner ahead of Dedication Night
Following Val Chmerkovskiy’s response to ‘DWTS’ judge Carrie Ann Inaba’s comments on his wife, Jenna Johnson’s performance, he was suspended for one week from the dance competition. After his suspension, his dance partner, Jenna Dewan, was assigned a temporary pro partner, Alan Bersten. Alan was previously eliminated in Week 2 alongside his celebrity partner, Giada De Laurentiis. The show announced the news on Saturday, October 17, 2026.
In a now-deleted post, Val reacted to Carrie Ann Inaba’s criticism of his wife, Jenna Johnson. "You almost saw Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night," he said, seemingly referencing Will Smith’s infamous Oscars slap. A BBC Studios spokesperson spoke about Val's comments and told US Weekly, “The well-being of everyone who works on Dancing with the Stars is non-negotiable. Val’s social media post was inappropriate and does not reflect the values or standards expected of anyone connected with the show. As a result, he will not participate in next week’s show.”
Jenna also shared an update on Sunday as she rehearsed with her temporary dance partner. She shared a video via her Instagram Story and said, “Hi everybody, It’s Dedication Night and we are dancing a Viennese waltz to ‘Unchained Melody’ by the Righteous Brothers, the greatest most romantic song ever.” The actress will dedicate her dance to her mom, Nancy, and mentioned that she was “so excited” for the performance. As she shared her excitement, Alan stood beside her and smiled.
While many are happy about Alan and Jenna being paired up, some are not on board. During a TikTok livestream, Gleb Savchenko shared his views on Alan taking over as Val’s replacement. “Alan, I think he’s Alan. I mean, he’s just not up to the level of dancing. Like, period.” He said Alan was “a good dancer, I guess, for TV.” He added, “But if we talk about art dancing? Like, creating art? He’s, like, eh, I don’t know.” Later in the livestream, he also mentioned that he didn’t want to “talk s**t” but was just “being honest.”
