Val Chmerkovskiy has entered the chat after Dancing With the Stars surprised fans by not bringing Sasha Farber back as a pro for season 34. "It's not personal," Chmerkovskiy, 39, exclusively told Us Weekly on Sunday, September 7, on the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards red carpet. "It's the nature of this business." Chmerkovskiy confessed that "it's personal for anybody who's invested" in the show and the dancers, which won't include fan-favorites Farber, 41, or Chmerkovskiy's sister-in-law, Peta Murgatroyd, this season.