Dancing With the Stars pro Val Chmerkovskiy is starting to pick up on partner Phaedra Parks‘ playful chemistry with judge Derek Hough — and he’s a little jealous.
“I am. I didn’t notice until right now,” Val, 38, quipped while speaking to Us Weekly exclusively on Tuesday, September 25, after they performed a foxtrot to “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” from Dreamgirls. “I will go back and look at the tape and reassess the situation.”
Val went on to joke that fans shouldn’t look past his own banter with Phaedra, 50.
“Don’t leave us out of it. That’s all I’m saying,” he noted. “Don’t leave us out of it. We got chemistry. We look good and we’re coming.”
Phaedra and Derek’s chemistry was initially on full display during the season 33 premiere of DWTS. After Phaedra and Val performed a cha cha to Whitney Houston’s “I’m Every Woman,” Derek, 39, offered the pair praise for their score of 19 out of 30.
“You look incredible. You look fabulous, you really truly do,” Derek gushed. “Oh, my goodness, I feel like I have to talk to you [with a deep, slow voice] the whole time. I just feel that energy between us. Sorry.”
Fellow judge Bruno Tonioli reminded Derek about his marriage to professional dancer Hayley Erbert, adding, “Derek, you’re married. You cannot do that. He cannot do that. He’s married.”
Derek told Us earlier this month that Phaedra was “fierce and fabulous” on DWTS. “I love her,” he shared. “She was slipping around a little bit last night, but I think that’s more of a technical thing that we can work on.”
In response to the vibes between her and Derek, Phaedra called him “so hot,” telling Us in a separate interview, “Hot ho. That sounds a little weird, [but] he is so sexy to me. Woo!”
The chemistry was once again on full display on Tuesday when Phaedra and Val received a 21 out of 30 for their foxtrot — plus some support from Derek.
“They were very, very gracious,” Val told Us before Phaedra added, “They’re obviously experts. I’m a student, so I’m always in a posture to learn. I’ve lived my life learning, hence all the degrees. So, I mean, I love criticism. It just makes me better.”
Dancing With the Stars airs simultaneously on ABC and Disney+ Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET. Episodes are available to stream on Hulu and Disney+ the next day.
With reporting by Carly Konsker
