DWTS’ Jenna Dewan Shares First Photo With Val Chmerkovskiy After His Suspension, and Fans Are Divided

Dancing with the Stars celeb Jenna Dewan and her recently suspended professional partner, Val Chmerkovskiy, are back in the studio rehearsing for Horror Movie Night.

Just in case you missed it (but really, what DWTS doesn’t know about this history-making moment?), Chmerkovskiy publicly clapped back against judge Carrie Ann Inaba’s critique of his wife, Jenna Johnson’s, samba routine with partner Harry Shum Jr. in a now-deleted TikTok post. The pro referenced Will Smith’s infamous slap at the Oscars, which resulted in his one-week suspension from the show.

In the meantime, Dewan was paired with pro Alan Bersten for “Dedication Night,” and Chmerkovskiy apologized on Instagram Stories to the show, Inaba, and his fans. Following Tuesday night’s performance, Page Six reported that a source said Chmerkovskiy’s suspension had been lifted and that he would return to the competition. And based on Dewan’s new Instagram pic, that’s correct.

With Halloween only a few days away, DWTS is making things spooky with “Horror Movie Night.” Dewan and the official Dancing with the Stars Instagram account recently shared a photo of the celeb and Chmerkovskiy with the caption, “The apocalypse is here. Jenna and Val are prepping an Argentine Tango inspired by 28 Days Later for #HorrorMovieNight.”

What do fans think of Chmerkovskiy’s return? Based on the comments…they’re divided.

“Anyone who says Val shouldn’t be there, have you ever made an error at your place of work and would prefer to have clarity over the matter before being let go? Like come on, he apologized and clarified,” wrote one fan, defending Chmerkovskiy.

Others added, “My mirrorball winners”, “Team Val. Can’t wait for this,” and “Thank goodness @valentin is coming back.”

And then the critics stepped in. “Really wish y’all would have suspended Val for the entire season,” responded one commenter, as others backed his substitute, writing, “Alan was great last week” and “Jenna deserves a better partner.”

Watch Dewan and Chmerkovskiy dance a zombie-inspired Argentine Tango to “Uninvited” by Damned Anthem and Kendra Dantes on Tuesday, October 27 at 8 p.m. live on ABC and Disney+ or stream the episode the next day on Hulu.