Looks like Dancing With the Stars partners Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Vanessa Lachey will remain professional despite not getting along.
Looks like Dancing With the Stars partners Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Vanessa Lachey will remain professional despite claims they're not getting along.
On Wednesday, Chmerkovskiy apologized to Lachey on Twitter, after he skipped Monday night's DWTS due to what co-host Erin Andrews called a "personal issue." A source later told ET that he actually refused to rehearse with Lachey this past week due to issues between the two, leading dancer Alan Bersten to fill in for him.
But a source tells ET that despite all the drama, Chmerkovskiy and Lachey will continue to dance together on the hit ABC show.
"The producers wouldn't switch partners because two people aren’t getting along, it’s just par for the course," the source says. "Drama is expected and part of the show. When you train with someone for so many hours so intensely, tensions can run high -- for better or worse. In this case, the intensity led to bickering."
The source also claims Chmerkovskiy is now in "full blown crisis management mode."
"He realizes that he messed up," the source claims. "Vanessa isn’t afraid to stand up to him. She’s a very strong woman."
"He’s on thin ice so you can expect that he’ll be on his best behavior from here one out," the source adds.
However, a second source tells ET that Chmerkovskiy remains in good standing with the show.
"He’s one of the most popular pros on Dancing with the Stars," the source notes. “Maks and Vanessa are continuing to dance together and hopefully they’ll make it all the way to the finals. At the end of the day, Maks is always a professional. This is his job. He just needed personal time away not related to Vanessa.”
A DWTS spokesperson previously told ET, "Maks and Vanessa are returning to rehearsals and will be dancing together on next week's show."
On Wednesday, Chmerkovskiy tweeted that he took full responsibility for missing the show, though didn't apologize for his reported behavior towards Lachey.
"As you are all aware, I had to leave the show last week to take care of some personal issues," he wrote. "I take full responsibility for my absence... and want to apologize to my partner Vanessa. We are both looking forward to dancing for our fans next week!"
Meanwhile, Lachey thanked Bersten on Instagram, and also said she couldn't wait to rehearse with Chmerkovskiy again.
A source previously told ET that the pair has been faking their seemingly close relationship.
"They're both super competitive and know how to 'turn it on' as performers," the source claimed.
Watch below:
-- Reporting by Angelique Jackson and Darla Murray