Alan Bersten is sharing his thoughts on stepping in for Val Chmerkovskiy on Dancing with the Stars after the professional dancer was suspended from the competition.

Hours before the Oct. 20 episode, Bersten, 32, posted photos on Instagram showing himself rehearsing with Jenna Dewan. He is temporarily replacing Chmerkovskiy, 40, as Dewan’s dance partner for Dedication Night, following the suspension announced on Oct. 17.

“I am so honored to be stepping in and dancing with @jennadewan,” Bersten wrote. “You are such a light and it’s so beautiful to see you and your mom share the floor.”

Dewan also shared a message on Instagram ahead of the live show, expressing how much the upcoming performance meant to her family.

“This is a truly timeless moment for my family. So grateful I get to create this memory with my mom that we will share forever! And thank you also to Alan for stepping in and being amazing,” the actress wrote.

Dewan will perform a Viennese waltz to The Righteous Brothers’ Unchained Melody in honor of her mother, Nancy. The performance comes as she continues her journey on the show with a temporary new partner.

Chmerkovskiy’s suspension followed a since-deleted social media post that referenced Will Smith’s infamous Oscars slap. On Oct. 14, he wrote, “You almost saw the Fresh Prince enter the ballroom last night.”

The comment came after DWTS judge Carrie Ann Inaba criticized the choreography of Chmerkovskiy’s wife, Jenna Johnson, during her performance with partner Harry Shum Jr. The post prompted backlash and led to Chmerkovskiy’s suspension, marking the first time a professional dancer had been suspended in the show’s history.

Chmerkovskiy later addressed the controversy in a public apology, explaining that he had wanted to defend his wife but had failed to consider what his reference might imply.

“In a moment where my instinct was to defend my wife, I made a poor decision to reference a meme to ‘keep my wife’s name’ out of the conversation, without stopping to think through what else that reference could imply, which was genuinely never my intention,” he said.

He also acknowledged that Inaba did not deserve to be caught in the middle of his mistake.

“Carrie Ann certainly didn’t deserve to get caught in the middle of my bad judgment, and I hate that she was,” he added.

Chmerkovskiy said he did not want to distract from Dedication Night or the work Dewan had put into the competition. He encouraged fans to support Inaba, Dewan and the entire DWTS family, adding that he would be watching and cheering them on.

The professional dancer had also apologized directly to Inaba on Oct. 15, saying he had reached out to her privately and acknowledging that his words could affect people beyond the show’s internal circle.

Meanwhile, Bersten’s return to the ballroom comes after he and celebrity partner Giada De Laurentiis were eliminated earlier in Season 35. His girlfriend and fellow professional dancer Emma Slater also defended the decision to have him replace Chmerkovskiy.

“We all step in for each other,” Slater wrote in response to a social media video questioning why Bersten was returning after his elimination.

With Bersten now partnering Dewan for Dedication Night, the pair will take the ballroom floor together as the controversy surrounding Chmerkovskiy continues.

Dancing with the Stars airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and Disney+, with episodes streaming the next day on Hulu.