Former DWTS pro Artem drops major bombshells about | TV Shows

Artem Chigvintsev has opened up about his ouster from Dancing With the Stars and some of the drama that has unfolded behind-the-scenes on the show in a no-holds-barred interview on fellow former pro Peta Murgatroyd’s podcast, Penthouse with Peta.

Artem, 43, appeared on the Monday, April 13 episode of the show and opened up to his third former pro, Sharna Burgess, about his expertise leaving the ABC show after a sudden departure forward of the thirty third season of the dance competitors collection.

Now, the pro, who competed with the likes of legends like Patti Labelle and two Bachelorette stars, as nicely as Mischa Barton, whose short-lived run was controversial, is opening up about his expertise on the show.

Artem, who competed on 12 seasons whole between seasons 19 and 32, was fired from the show in 2024 following a felony home violence charge after a confrontation with his then-wife (and season 25 associate) Nikki Bella.

Charges have been later dropped, and he and Bella went on to divorce–but he was not requested back to the show.

Now, talking to Peta, who also last competed on the thirty second season, and Sharna, who last appeared on season 30, he dropped a number of bombshells about his general expertise on the show, as nicely as his life after the ouster.

Touching on stunning experiences from his time on the show to his ideas on how issues have unfolded there since, he appeared not to maintain something back during his chat.

Here are the 4 greatest bombshells he dropped from half one of his interview:

He hasn’t watched the show since he was let go

One of the first issues he revealed to his fellow former professionals was that, despite being a Mirroball champ (he gained Season 29 with Katilyn Bristowe), he has not watched an episode since he left the show.

“I’m not going to lie, I didn’t watch one episode since I exited the show. I haven’t seen one. I’ve never…never one,” he said. “Like, I just think it was easier for me to kind of be present in me and what I need to do, what I need to take care of versus like, watching and feel like, ‘oh, I wish I was still part of it because at the end of the day, that’s what I love doing for years and years and years.”

“I don’t want to say it’s a scar, but it will always be part of that void, like, I don’t think anything can really fulfill that void, at least at this state now where I’m at.”

He slammed the show’s manner of informing professionals of how they’ve been cut

While his cut was sudden, Artem shared that he felt the best way the show dealt with letting professionals go–and by not informing them they have been cut forward of time, wasn’t the correct manner to deal with issues.

“I wish the show would do, ‘we just want to let you know this is your last season, enjoy this, like we really want you to just have a good time,’ and like, even that part of the closure would have been so much better than what they do now. Come on, really like you don’t know? Of course you do know.”

“I think they are missing the part of responsibility building something up, and those people being dependent, becoming dependent, and they don’t give that closure in the end, it’s just a drop.”

Artem hinted that there are professionals who don’t perceive the job–and are just in it for a paycheck

As he aired his grievances, Artem appeared to also take goal at the show’s hiring practices, admitting that he has always felt that there are people who get employed as professionals who don’t really know how to educate sure dances–and that they need to put more work into studying dances they don’t know.

“People are educating ballroom when it’s a foxtrot, like, when there’s no foxtrot steps in it. I’m not going to name professional dancers, but if you don’t know that type of dance, go and study, that’s not that difficult,” he said. “Just because you’re getting offered a job, that’s okay, you get offered the job, it’s up to you to accept it because you know you can do it.”

“You don’t just take the job that you kind of like; you don’t really know what I’m doing, but I’m going to take it because it’s a good opportunity. If you decide to do that, then do what you’re required to do,” he added. “I think it’s very simple. If I’m going to try and become something else, I’m not going to say, ‘Yeah, I’ll take the job, come on the job, I’m not really sure what I’m doing.’ Should it have been offered to certain people and certain jobs? Maybe not. But it’s still up to you. You’re the one who accepted.”

Artem admitted to an uncomfortable second with one of his former companions.

While talking with Sharna and Peta, he shared one “crazy” factor somebody said to him.

“I remember one person, they were like, ‘I want you to look at me like you want to f-k me’ in one of the dances,” he recalled. “How do you, first of all, what do you say in return? And then what do you do after that?”

Peta and Sharna also shared comparable tales, with Sharna admitting that “your whole skin crawls” when such feedback are made.