‘DWTS’ Pro Val Chmerkovskiy Apologizes to Carrie Ann Inaba for “Careless” Will Smith Oscars Slap Reference: “I Will Do Better”

Dancing With the Stars professional dancer Val Chmerkovskiy has apologized to Carrie Ann Inaba for his “careless” reference to Will Smith’s infamous Oscars slap in a since-deleted TikTok Story post.

“I want to apologize from the bottom of my heart for my recent post,” the pro wrote on his Instagram Story Thursday. “I have reached out to Carrie Ann to apologize directly and personally, and I also want to apologize publicly as I understand 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. I recognize that 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 by actively pausing to think before I post to ensure what I am sharing aligns with who I am, and who I want to be for you all.”

Chmerkovskiy concluded, “I am truly sorry to Carrie Ann, and everyone who I hurt with my careless post. I will do better moving forward.”

The three-time DWTS winner had been defending his wife, fellow pro Jenna Johnson, online following criticism the judge shared for her samba performance with Harry Shum Jr. on Tuesday’s Super Bowl Night. Chmerkovskiy particularly received backlash for a TikTok Story he posted on Wednesday that read, “You almost saw Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night,” a comment many took as a reference to Smith slapping Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars.

Inaba responded to his remarks earlier on Instagram Thursday, writing “So this is what we are doing now?” while resharing a screenshot of a Page Six post featuring the dancer’s “Fresh Prince” comment, alongside a split image of Smith and Chmerkovskiy.

After Johnson and her celebrity partner Harry Shum Jr. performed a samba to Usher’s “Yeah!,” the judge told the mirrorball champion, “I think you need to put more content in your dances. Especially because [Harry’s] so good, I want to see you challenge yourself a little bit more in the vein of what we’re looking for. And there was a lift.” Johnson responded to Inaba’s comments by asking, “A lift?”

Inaba brought out a piece of paper with the definition of lift, which she read during the live episode: “A lift is — I just need to say it — 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. Yeah, lift.”

Chmerkovskiy’s Fresh Prince TikTok Story was posted on Wednesday and was live for at least six hours. One Reddit thread was flooded with theories that Chmerkovskiy’s post was “likely referring to when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock for making a comment about his wife,” adding that they took his comment as he allegedly “wanted to slap Carrie Ann for telling Jenna to step it up.” The story was subsequently deleted.

Smith walked onto the Oscars stage while Rock was hosting in 2022 after he made a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, starring in a G.I. Jane sequel. “Keep my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth!” Smith infamously yelled from the crowd after he returned to his seat following the slap.