Corey Feldman set the record straight amid rumors that he and his Dancing With the Stars partner Jenna Johnson were feuding before their elimination from season 34.
Win or lose, Corey Feldman is standing by his Dancing With the Stars partner Jenna Johnson.
The Stand By Me alum expressed his gratitude for the ballroom dancer after the pair were eliminated from the competition alongside NBA star Baron Davis and his partner Britt Stewart during the ABC show’s Sept. 23 episode.
“Thank U Jenna!” Corey, 51, commented under the 31-year-old’s Sept. 24 Instagram post. “U were an absolute joy to work with. Im so sorry for any negativity the media is using to give the false narrative that our time together was anything less than enjoyable.”
Alluding to rumors that he was uncooperative during rehearsals, the Goonies actor continued, “And U know as well as i do that i was there 7 days a week for the past 3 weeks, doing everything in my power to give U my best, even if the judges couldnt see it.”
He added to Jenna, “God Bless your family. Keep dancing the dream.”
Likewise, Jenna had kind words about Corey, writing in her initial post, “Our time together was cut short but I am SO grateful for the incredible weeks we did get to share!!”
“Thank you for the giggles everyday in rehearsal, thank you for the hard work, and thank you for sharing your life lessons and memories with me,” she continued. “I’ll cherish our friendship forever. Never stop dancing.”
Whispers of a fallout surfaced earlier this month, when Jenna shared that Corey was MIA following the cast announcement on Good Morning America Sept. 3.
“So many people have been, like, ‘Where are your TikToks with Corey? What’s happening?’” Jenna wrote on her Instagram Story Sept. 6, per Us Weekly. “To be completely honest, I actually haven’t seen him since Good Morning America.”
Though the two happily reunited days after her post, with Jenna clarifying that Corey hadn’t been in rehearsals due to prior engagements, speculation of behind-the-scenes tension continued to swirl when her brother-in-law Maksim Chmerkovskiy—who won season 18 of DWTS—hinted that the dancer was facing some challenges in the studio.
“Obviously, Jenna has a bit of an uphill climb with Corey, which is easy for everybody to say from [outside],” he told the Daily Mail in an interview published Sept. 23, “but I know that she’s having a much more difficult time with this entire thing and to the point that it is really difficult for her.”
Given that Jenna previously won with The Bachelor‘s Joey Graziadei, Maksim—whose brother Val Chmerkovskiy is partnered with influencer Alix Earle this season—believes people should “put some respect on the name.”
Eric McCandless/Disney via Getty Images“You’re talking about a reigning champ,” he said of his sister-in-law, who shares 2-year-old son Rome with Val. “That show requires you to be able to tell grown people what to do and stand your ground.”
Ultimately, when Corey looked at his short-lived run with Jenna, he believes she “deserved better.”
“I feel really terrible,” he said in his parting words on DWTS‘ Sept. 23 episode. “She was the queen from last year, so she deserves to be the champ every year in my book ‘cause she’s really great.”
To see the full season 34 lineup, read on.
