Maksim Chmerkovskiy doesn't have to be doing the salsa to get a little spicy.
As a pro on Dancing With the Stars for 17 seasons, he won the Mirror Ball Trophy once, but he was always voted least likely to hold back when it came to sharing his honest opinion, be it about a judge's score or a celebrity partner.
As he told USA Today in 2024, "I feel like there was one Maks that was always being portrayed, badly or not. This was all me; I take responsibility for all the portrayal."
And even though the 45-year-old father of three hasn't been a regular on the show since 2017, he's still got a rooting interest—brother Val Chmerkovskiy remains a season 34 contender with partner Alix Earle—and, it turns out, plenty of hot takes.
His latest being that first-time DWTS pro Jan Ravnik, who's partnered with Jen Affleck, has "absolutely no business" being on the show.
Letting loose on his wife and fellow DWTS alum Peta Murgatroyd's The Penthouse With Peta podcast Oct. 24, Maks explained that he had nothing personal against Jan. But, in his opinion, the 30-year-old's previous experience—dancing on Taylor Swift's Eras Tour—simply hadn't translated into having the skills required of a DWTS pro.
"There's zero foundation technique, quality, understanding of the partnership," Maks lamented. "Bro, I'm getting emotional. It is absurd, and this is unreal how blind we have to be and God forbid say what's obviously there."
Jen would beg to differ. In an Oct. 27 TikTok, the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star furiously typed away on her phone, while Jan mimed reasoning with her while the background audio said, "Take it down, take it down...We need it gone...That doesn't represent me or what we need to be doing."
The video was captioned, "We don't tolerate Jan slander in this house!!"
Ahead of dancing to Taylor's "Look What You Made Me Do" on the Oct. 28 episode of DWTS, Jan posted rehearsal footage on his Instagram Stories, pulling out this lyric for the caption: "I'll be the actress starring in your bad dreams."
So, consider that the pair's response to Maks' candor.
But the season 18 DWTS champ isn't one to hold back, and his signature bluntness wasn't not part of what made him a fan favorite in the ballroom all those years.
Though when you go toe-to-toe with beloved head judge Len Goodman, be prepared to be considered the villain in that drama.
Maks infamously quarreled on live TV with Len in October 2011, when the pro was partnered with soccer player Hope Solo for season 13. After the British ballroom expert deemed Maks and Hope's rumba her "worst dance of the season," Maks pushed back and Len reminded him that he'd been in the business for 50 years.
To which Maks fired back, "Maybe it's time to get out."
Judge Carrie Ann Inaba interjected, "Don't be disrespectful like that."
Talking to DWTS' then-cohost Brooke Burke backstage, Maks said, “With all due respect, this is my show. I helped make it what it is.”
And when some of his fellow pros distanced themselves, he told E! News at the time, "Not all of them [share my opinion]. Most of them, yes. But there are a few of them that actually went up to the judges and for some reason went as far as apologizing for me and disagreeing with what I said."
Hope was improving, he insisted, "and to get comments that was the opposite of what it was, it wasn't even upsetting, it was more like, ‘I have had enough!' You have an opinion. I also have an opinion."
Reflecting on what transpired the next day on Good Morning America, Maks doubled down.
"I definitely have nothing to apologize for,” he said. “I have nothing to apologize for to Len, and certainly not to Carrie Ann. She can make all the faces she wants."
And that incident, plus every other prickly exchange between Maks and Len that ensued over the years, did have the aura of a feud about it.
But when Len passed away in 2023, Maks took the loss hard along wtih the rest of the DWTS family and danced in the emotional tribute to the veteran judge.
"There was never enough of a fight that we had to talk about it," Maks explained to USA Today last year. "We played golf a bunch of times and were perfectly fine together. I miss him."
But Maks didn't just have daggers for Len at the judges' table.
After guest judge Abby Lee Miller found Maks' season 18 rumba with Olympic ice dancer Meryl Davis to be lacking, the pro told DWTS co-host Erin Andrews afterward, "I really don't care for anything she has to say."
The Dance Moms star called Maks' comment "disrespectful," but he ultimately had the last word in the form of winning the Mirror Ball with Meryl.
Meanwhile, despite their fourth-place finish, there was no love lost between Hope and Maks.
She alleged in her 2012 book Solo: A Memoir of Hope that Maks "manhandled" her during rehearsals and at one point "slapped" her across the face to get her head in a certain position, but wrote that she didn't make an issue of it because she "didn't want to end Maks' career."
Maks appeared to comment on Twitter (now X), writing, "Always hated hypocrites and liars...but when someone is both AND an opportunist, I just feel bad for them. Can't win at someone's expense."
On a 2015 episode of the podcast Allegedly with Theo Von & Matthew Cole Weiss, Maks sacrified Hope in a game of "F--k, Marry, Kill."
"She's just a s--tty person," he said of the athlete. "People can be bad or good or whatever. You can have a s--tty life growing up. You can have a tough upbringing. You can have history. You can have whatever. But, if you are just a bad person, you know what I mean? There's no excuse for that."
Another pairing that took a turn after the fact: Maks and season 12 partner Kirstie Alley.
Maks waltzed the actress to runner-up status in 2011, but in 2014 he said her chosen religion (Kirstie, who died in 2022, practiced Scientology) got in the way of their friendship.
"She stopped getting along with me," Maks said on Watch What Happens Live. "We had a great relationship...But I got a message now that I am associating with other people that she can't be associated with, I am no longer to be spoken with, and sorry, but it is what it is...I'm not judging people by their religion. I'm Jewish. I don't really believe in science fiction, but whatever."
He added, "It's sad that we've gone through so much together, and I feel like I've helped her. And this is where we're at now. But I still think the world of her, and I wish her all the best."
Incidentally, Maks intended to leave DWTS for good in 2012 after partnering with Kirstie again for the show's all-star 15th season. And though he fortuitously returned to dance with Meryl in 2014, his explanation for his original departure was classic.
"What else do I have to do there after 15 seasons?" he told the New York Post on his way out the door the first time. "It makes total sense. The audience can't expect for me to want to stick around, and the producers can't expect for me to want to stick around. I loved doing it. But to be honest with you, at 32, I am at what-about-me time."
True to form, on the floor and off.
While Maks may have cornered the market on DWTS, see what started these other celebrity feuds:
Tan France vs. Bobby Berk
Bobby (pictured second from left) addressed rumors of a falling out with Tan (middle) in January 2024, two months after he announced his exit from Queer Eye after eight seasons.
"I want people to know that Tan and I—we will be fine," he told Vanity Fair. "There was a situation, and that's between Tan and I, and it has nothing to do with the show. It was something personal that had been brewing—and nothing romantic, just to clarify that."
In March 2024, Tan responded to allegations that he had campaigned to replace Bobby on Queer Eye with his friend Jeremiah Brent.
"Netflix and the production companies did a full-on casting. I didn't put my friend up for the job. They ended up getting it because they were the best person for the job," he said on Instagram. "But I didn't get them hired by getting rid of somebody else."
Shannen Doherty vs. Alyssa Milano
Following years of rumors of a feud between the two, on a December 2023 episode of her podcast Let's Be Clear, Shannen's former Charmed costar Holly Marie Combs alleged that Alyssa had once made an ultimatum to a show producer to choose between herself and Shannen, which ultimately led to the latter leaving the show in 2001.
In February 2024, Alyssa said on Instagram, "I did not have the power to get anyone fired" and that "this was so long ago that any retelling of these stories from anyone is just revisionist history."
A day later, Shannen said at a panel event at MegaCon Orlando, "There is no revisionist history happening in the truth that I know we told."
Shannen passed away in July 2024 after a yearslong battle with cancer.
Sharon Osbourne vs. Ashton Kutcher
In September 2023, while playing a game called Stir the Pot with her daughter Kelly Osbourne on E! News, Sharon said the That '70s Show alum was the rudest celebrity she had ever met, branding him, a "rude, rude, rude, rude little boy" and a "dastardly little thing."
He did not respond to her remarks publicly.
Five years prior, Sharon told Larry King that when Ashton appeared on The Talk in 2014, he had an "attitude" after she got his name wrong.
"He goes, 'What are you, what have you done in this industry?'" she recalled. "And I was like, 'Kid, don't start with me, because I'm gonna eat you up and s--t you out.' So I was just like, 'You don't know what you're dealing with, kid.'"
Maren Morris & Cassadee Pope vs. Brittany Aldean
In August 2022, Cassadee and Maren traded harsh words with Brittany, wife of fellow country star Jason Aldean, after she shared an Instagram Reel of herself applying makeup on Aug. 23, writing, "I'd really like to thank my parents for not changing my gender when I went through my tomboy phase. I love this girly life."
JoJo Siwa vs. Candace Cameron Bure
During a 2022 TikTok challenge, JoJo Siwa described Candace Cameron Bure as the "rudest" celebrity, later explaining that she felt snubbed when Bure once refused to take a picture with her on a red carpet. Shortly after the dig, however, the Full House alum apologized: "I kind of broke your 11-year-old heart. I didn't take a picture with you. Ugh! I feel crummy, I feel—JoJo, I'm so sorry."
The two made amends. But months later, Candace was asked if she expects the Great American Family network, of which she serves as chief creative officer, to feature same-sex couples as leads in holiday movies. She said no, adding, "I think that Great American Family will keep traditional marriage at the core."
JoJo, who came out as a member of the LGBTQ+ community in 2021, wrote on Instagram that the actress' comment is "rude and hurtful to a whole community of people."
Courtney Love vs. Olivia Rodrigo
Back in June 2021, Courtney Love accused Olivia Rodrigo of copying her band Hole's album cover for a promotional photo without giving credit. Olivia responded, "Love u and live through this sooooo much." Courtney then replied, "Olivia - you're welcome. My favorite florist is in Notting Hill, London! Dm me for deets! I look forward to reading your note [winking face emoji]."
Henry Winkler vs. Tom Hanks
During an appearance Watch What Happens Live, the Happy Days actor was asked why he didn't get along with the Forrest Gump star on the set of the 1989 flick Turner & Hooch.
"I was directing that movie for 13 days and then I was called into [producer] Jeff Katzenberg's office and he said, 'You have everything with you? Go home,'" he said.
Winkler did, however, seem to get along with Hanks' four-legged co-star. "I got along great, great with that dog," he said. "Love that dog."
He also refused to admit if he's even seen the flick.
Heidi Montag vs. Lauren Conrad
"You know what you did!"
Fans of The Hills will remember that iconic line, delivered by Lauren on the season three premiere. Their feud began when Heidi started dating her now-husband Spencer Pratt, and hit its peak when Lauren accused Heidi and Spencer of starting a rumor that she had made a sex tape with Jason Wahler.
Dwayne Johnson vs. Tyrese Gibson
The costars reignited their ongoing feud when Tyrese publicly called out Dwayne on Instagram after the Fast and Furious 9 release date was pushed back to April 2020. That same day, it was announced that a Fast and Furious spinoff starring Dwayne and Jason Statham would hit theaters in 2019. The following month, Tyrese threatened to quit Fast 9 if Dwayne was in the movie.
Tyrese then opened up about the feud, telling Van Lathan on The Red Pill podcast, "I have yet to talk to The Rock to this day, and we will have a conversation." He shared that he did have a conversation with the former wrestler's producing partner, but not the actor himself.
"I found myself being the messenger on behalf of various people associated to the franchise, but stupid me was the only one who went public about those feelings, which is my own fault," Tyrese said. "It's not professional, it's not cool."
Taylor Swift vs. Katy Perry
No more bad blood here.
Taylor and Katy had been in a feud for years, even allegedly inspiring Taylor's song "Bad Blood." The drama, which reportedly started over a backup dancer and competing tours, came to an end after Perry sent Taylor a literal olive branch before her Reputation Tour kickoff.
"So I just got to my dressing room and found this actual olive branch," Taylor said in an Instagram video. "This mean so much."
Taylor captioned the video, "Thank you Katy."
Kim Cattrall vs. Sarah Jessica Parker
Sex and the City costars Kim and SJP had dodged feud rumors for years. But they were reignited after Kim decided not to return for a third movie and made comments about her costar that raised eyebrows.
"What was your reaction to Kim Cattrall telling Piers Morgan that you were never friends just colleagues?" Andy Cohen asked SJP on a Sept. 2017 episode of Watch What Happens Live.
As she explained, "Just...heartbroken. I mean that whole week, you and I spoke about it because I was just...I don't know I found it really upsetting because that's, you know, that's not the way I recall our experience."
"So...it's sad but I'm kind of...I don't know, I always think that what ties us together is this singular experience is the thing. It was a professional experience but it became personal because it was years and years of our lives. So I'm hoping that that sort of eclipses anything that's been recently spoken," she continued. "That many years spent doing something so special that people had a connection with is such a privileged."
And though they didn't film scenes together, Kim did make a small appearance on And Just Like That.
Madonna vs. Elton John
The iconic singers have been feuding since 2004. While accepting the Classic Songwriter Award at the Q Awards that year, Elton said to attendees, "Madonna, best f--king live act? F--k off! Since when has lip-syncing been live? Sorry about that, but I think everyone who lip-syncs in public on stage, when you pay like 75 quid to see them, should be shot."
Shonda Rhimes vs. Katherine Heigl
The former Grey's Anatomy star sparked a feud with the series creator in 2008 when she removed her name from the Emmy Awards consideration. The actress stated that her reason for the move was because she wasn't "given the material to warrant a nomination."
Shonda later opened up about Katherine's decision during an interview with Oprah Winfrey on Oprah's Next Chapter in 2012. "On some level it stung and on some level I was not surprised," she said. "When people show you who they are, believe them. I carry that [mantra] with me a lot. It has served me well."
Nicki Minaj vs. Cardi B
It was the New York Fashion Week fight heard 'round the world when Nicki and Cardi got into a heated altercation at the Harper's Bazaar Icon party. The following month, Cardi opened up about the catalyst for the fight with Nicki.
"For a while now she's been taking a lot of shots at me," Cardi said in W magazine's Art Issue. "I spoke to her twice before, and we came to an understanding. But she kept it going."
The real spark of the fight came when Cardi saw that Nicki had allegedly liked and then unliked a tweet about Cardi's parenting skills, which Nicki has denied.
"I was going to make millions off my Bruno Mars tour, and I sacrificed that to stay with my daughter," Cardi continued. "I love my daughter. I'm a good-ass f--king mom. So for somebody that don't have a child to like that comment? So many people want to say that party wasn't the time or the place, but I'm not going to catch another artist in the grocery store or down the block."
Kanye West vs. Taylor Swift
Tension between Kanye and Taylor first started in 2009, when the "Stronger" rapper took the stage during her acceptance speech at the MTV Video Music Awards. Years later, the two would make up and even become friends, but that came to an end in 2026 after the release of his song "Famous," in which he name-checks the "End Game" singer.
In February 2025, one day before the Grammys, Kanye updated his Instagram to follow only Taylor. He added no further comment, and the fellow musician did not respond publicly to the move.
Mariah Carey vs. Jennifer Lopez
"I don't know her."
It's been over 15 years since Mariah and J.Lo's "feud" has been going on. It all started when the Queen of Christmas was asked to give her opinion on several singers during an interview. When asked her opinion on Jennifer, she replied, "I don't know her."