Getty Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Valentin Chmerkovskiy attend an event in Las Vegas.
Both “Dancing with the Stars” professional dancers Maksim Chmerkovskiy and his younger brother Val Chmerkovskiy welcomed children in recent months with their wives, Peta Murgatroyd and Jenna Johnson. For Maks and Murgatroyd, this was their second son, and for Val and Johnson, it was their first. The two men joined former DWTS winner Kaitlyn Bristowe for her podcast “Off the Vine” recently, and even got uncharacteristically emotional when discussing fatherhood.
Here’s what you need to know:
Val Chmerkovskiy Loves Being a Father
Both Maks and Val joined Bristowe for her July 11 episode of “Off the Vine.” The two talked about growing up together, both in Ukraine and then the United States, and shared several examples of how close they have been over the years, despite Maks being six years older than Val. As “Dancing with the Stars” know, Maks and his wife already had their son Shai, who is now 6 years old, and they recently added Rio to their family. For Val and Johnson, their first child, Rome, was born in January. Bristowe asked if the two “Dancing with the Stars” veterans had planned to have babies who would be around the same age, but Val noted their respective infertility challenges made it an unexpected surprise. “No, it wasn’t planned, but that’s the best part.”
Bristowe also asked Val what the transition from uncle to father has been like. He noted that fatherhood is completely different, and then he paused for a second before adding, “I just love it. Fatherhood… the truth is, this is the greatest time of my life for sure, by far.” Val admitted, “Nothing [else] ever even came close.”
Maks Chmerkovskiy Had Been Waiting to Hear What Val Said
When Val shared that touching sentiment, Maks got emotional too. “There it is,” he said, as he smiled. The former “Dancing with the Stars” pro added, “I’ve been waiting for that statement from him. This is the exclusive, first time… He’s emotional, but he puts things in words and that’s the kind of word… I was waiting for that.”
Maks also admitted, “Somebody told me this nonsense when I was pre-fatherhood…” and Val then happened to cut his older brother off. It seemed Maks was intending to say that when people told him how much fatherhood would change things before he had Shai, or how much he would love it, he didn’t believe them. It was clear, in his answer, Maks feels the same way about fatherhood as Val does, and he loves seeing his younger brother develop that feeling too.
Val pointed out, “I’m not saying that my life was bad, that’s the thing. My life was so good that I’m, like, how can anything ever top this, and this, it’s not even close.” Both men praised their wives, acknowledging the ladies are central to why they both love their lives so much these days. Maks gushed, “I do think this is one of the… this is it, this is how… how does it get better because I feel like at this age… they look at you with, like, ‘Oh my God you’re everything'” types of looks.
“Dancing with the Stars” fans seemed touched by what Maks and Val shared. “I just watched it and it was adorable to see Maks getting emotional when Val mentioned that having Rome made him the happiest he has ever been,” one fan detailed on the “Dancing with the Stars” subreddit. Another Redditor responded, “It surprised me too! I think I’ve seen Maks cry/get emotional publicly more in the past three years just on interviews or Instagram than we ever did in his 15 years on TV lol. Which is a good thing! I always appreciate when ‘tough guys’ can show that side.”