Fans Are Divided Over How 'Dancing With The Stars' Handled Punishing Pro Who Insinuated That He Wanted To Slap Female Judge

A heated debate has erupted among Dancing With the Stars fans after pro Val Chmerkovskiy made a joke about wanting to slap his female coworker.

The incident occurred after judge Carrie Ann Inaba criticized Chmerkovskiy's wife, fellow pro Jenna Johnson.

In an Instagram Story, Chmerkovskiy joked that he almost pulled a "Fresh Prince" on Inaba.

@valentin/Instagram

Chmerkovskiy wrote:

"You almost saw Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night."

Chmerkovskiy was obviously referencing the now infamous incident in which Will Smith, whose rap alter ego was "the Fresh Prince," violently slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars after Rock made a joke about Smith's wife Jada Pinkett-Smith.

At issue was Inaba's criticisms of Johnson's dance with actor Harry Shum Jr. for including a lift in their dance that was against the rules.

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Inaba told Johnson:

"Like, I want to see you challenge yourself a little bit more in the vein of what we're looking for from you,. And there was a lift."

When Johnson protested that there was no lift, Inaba responded by reading the definition of a lift to Johnson:

"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."

Johnson accepted the pushback graciously, but Chmerkovskiy could be seen acting visibly irritated by the criticism while Johnson and Shum got their score.

He then subsequently posted his "Fresh Prince" joke to his Instagram Story, which Inaba clearly saw.

In an Instagram post of her own that seems to have since been deleted, Inaba swiftly criticized Chmerkovskiy for what he said.

She shared a screenshot of a media story about what her colleague said, along with onscreen text reading "So is this what we're doing now?"

@carrieanninaba/Instagram

Chmerkovskiy was quick to post a lengthy apology on his Instagram Story, in which he admitted the statement was inappropriate. He wrote that he had discussed the issue personally with Inaba, but that he also wanted to "apologize publicly" for what he said.

His statement read in part:

"...I am in a fortunate position to have a platform and to be a role model to some, and I need to treat that with more care..."

"...I am truly sorry to Carrie Ann, and everyone I hurt with my careless post."

@valentin/Instagram

Two days later, Dancing With the Stars' production company BBC Studios announced it was suspending Chmerkovskiy for one episode because of his comments.

In a statement, they called the comment "inanpropriate" and explained why he was being suspended:

"The well-being of everyone who works on 'Dancing With the Stars' is non-negotiable."

In yet another post, Chmerkovskiy explained that while he understood the decision, his intent was never to suggest slapping Inaba. Rather, he said he was referencing was Smith said to Rock that night at the Oscars, "keep my wife's name out of your mouth."

@valentin/Instagram

On social media, the flap has caused quite a controversy, with many feeling that Chmerkovskiy did nothing wrong and everyone is being too sensitive.

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TeawithB/TikTok

But others, especially on Reddit, felt that the punishment was not commensurate with the gravity of Chmerkovskiy's reference to domestic violence, nor did they feel his statement was adequate.

"...threatened a woman with violence because she was doing the job she’s paid to do. This apology is bullsh*t and he’s just trying to do a PR clean up."

"He couldn’t even write in this apology 'violence against women is not okay.' How easy would that have been? He is purposefully omitting what he did wrong and why it’s wrong. Minimizing it to a 'reference.'" —u/CRAZYSPOOKYSCARY

"I don’t respect people who post apologies to their IG story. It’s going to disappear in 24 hours, but the comment he made and the meaning behind it have lasting harm."

"Threatening violence against women isn’t funny, and these are just empty words someone (or AI) fed him to post, so people upset about what he said would move on." —u/HumbleBell

"That’s always a sign of a great marriage. Where your husband ruins your awesome opportunity to imply violence against a woman." —u/stickbugszz

"Not good enough. He has to go." —u/Nervous_Insect5976

Chmerkovskiy's partner on the show, Jenna Dewan, was still able to compete on the October 20 episode without him, being paired instead with pro Alan Bertsen.

Chmerkovskiy is expected to still appear on the next episode airing October 27.