There's nothing I love more than drama that doesn't affect me in any way, so I'm all ears for these reports that allege that there's trouble in paradise behind the scenes of season 25 of Dancing With The Stars.
According to Entertainment Weekly and Us Weekly, the reason Maks Chmerkovskiy didn't appear on the October 2 episode was not, as host Erin Andrews said, because of a "personal issue," but rather, according to sources, "a big chemistry issue" between Chmerkovskiy and his partner, Vanessa Lachey.
"There is a lot of fighting going on behind the scenes," a source told Us Weekly. "Their personalities are very similar so they disagree about everything. They refuse to give into one another."
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This was echoed by Entertainment Weekly's insider, who said that their conflicting personalities were not "the best recipe for a good partnership."
Earlier today, Chmerkovskiy took to Twitter to apologize for his absence.
As you are all aware, I had to leave the show last week to take care of some personal issues. I take full responsibility for my absence....
— Maksim Chmerkovskiy (@MaksimC) October 4, 2017
.... and want to apologize to my partner Vanessa. We are both looking forward to dancing for our fans next week!
— Maksim Chmerkovskiy (@MaksimC) October 4, 2017
"As you are all aware, I had to leave the show last week to take care of some personal issues. 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!"
Lachey herself had previously spoken to Us Weekly about their relationship, but had slightly different things to say.
"I just know that when I'm on set he's my coach and I'm the student, so I listen a lot more and I don't speak up as much because this is a field I don't know," she explained. "He's trained me and taught me so many amazing wonderful new things just like any trainer would or teacher would."
So of course, it's time to consult an expert. While Julianne Hough left the show this season to focus on other projects, she did give her insight to Mario Lopez on Extra yesterday.
"Honestly, since I've been a judge, like, I'm so out of that world," she explained. "It's like we're on a whole other side of the stage and we kind of hear what happens as well. We're just like everybody else."
If anyone wants to spill the tea (if there is tea to spill — these are all unconfirmed rumors), I'm all ears.
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Refinery29 has reached out to Vanessa Lachey, Maksim Chmerkovskiy, and Dancing With The Stars for comment and will update if we hear back.