Carrie Ann Inaba has broken her silence on the Dancing with the Stars lift controversy, saying she and Jenna Johnson “hugged it out” after the Super Bowl night show and asking for a new lift rule to be written for next season. The judge shared her side in a comment on one of her own Instagram posts, as Variety reported.
Her comments come after a rough stretch in the ballroom. On Super Bowl Night, Inaba called out a lift in Johnson’s routine with Harry Shum Jr. Johnson’s husband, Val Chmerkovskiy, then posted and deleted a TikTok that most viewers took as a reference to Will Smith’s slap at the Oscars, and BBC Studios pulled Chmerkovskiy from Dedication Night as a result.
“Two Women Worked Through The Moment”
Inaba said she had stayed quiet out of respect for the couples still in the competition, and because the show’s standards and practices keep the judges separated from the cast. She felt the headlines left out part of the story.
“I think it’s important for everyone to know that Jenna and I hugged it out after the Super Bowl show. Jenna was an absolute professional about it, and two women worked through the moment,” she wrote. Inaba added that she only learned later how hurt Johnson had been, and that she has offered to talk with her at any time and to walk through how she enforces the lift rule. She also pointed fans to a video from fellow pro Sharna Burgess explaining lifts, assists and which dances allow them.
A Call For A New Lift Rule
Inaba has long docked points for illegal lifts, and over the last few seasons some fans have accused her of calling them on some couples and letting others slide. Rather than defend the current rule, she asked for a fresh one.
“I think in the future, a new lift rule should be created for next season,” Inaba wrote. She suggested a session with every dancer and judge in one room to go over how she, the late Len Goodman and the show’s original producers defined the rule, and why. Its purpose, she said, is “safety and fairness.” She noted that the show, its casting and its audience have all changed, and said building a better understanding between the dancers, the judges and viewers is something she has asked for.
Chmerkovskiy has already apologized publicly. In an Instagram post, he said his instinct was to defend his wife and that he made “a poor decision” by referencing the meme, adding that Inaba “certainly didn’t deserve to get caught in the middle of my bad judgment.” He said he also reached out to her personally.
Whether the show actually changes the rule will not be clear until next season. For now, Inaba stays on the judges’ panel as Season 35 continues live on ABC and Disney+.
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