‘Dancing With the Stars’ Pro Will No Longer Participate in Season After Sustaining Injury

Another season of Dancing With the Stars marks another injury ending opportunity for one participant. Season 33 pro, Emma Slater, has suffered a double whammy following last week’s double elimination on the ABC reality dance competition series. She and her partner, actor Reginald VelJohnson, were cut from after their cha cha and foxtrot failed to impress viewers. She recently announced that she sustained an ankle injury in an undisclosed accident. Now, she’ll put her troupe plans on hold. 

“Today threw a little curve ball at me but got looked after by some special people,” she wrote on Instagram, as reported by Deadline. “Thought I was gunna be cutting a rug with my fellow #eliminated pros but sadly I got #eliminated from that crew too so I think I’ll go join @thereginaldveljohnson and just sit on the couch for a bit.”

VelJohnson was saddened by his elimination. He says Slater made the experience worth the while. “Saying goodbye is going to be hard, because I love her,” he told Good Morning America after being eliminated, as reported by ABC News.

“It’s going to be really sad not seeing him every day. That was the first thought that hit me. So we’re gonna have to make sure that we see each other,” Slater said of the Family Matters star. VelJohnson also called Slater “my friend forever.” Slater’s praise for the actor continued, with her noting, “He’s in my life absolutely forever.” She also promises to keep up their famous TikTok dances, as they don’t live far from one another.

“People have missed having Reggie on their TV screens, and this has been a perfect opportunity for him to do something regularly. Every week he’s been gracing the TV screens, and a whole new generation of people have fallen in love with him — that and because of social media,” she said. “So I’m really hoping that Reggie gets to stay on the TV screen and all these floods of job offers come in for him.”