Julianne Hough Chastises Maksim Chmerkovskiy For “Phoning It In” On Dancing With The Stars…NeNe Leakes Agrees!

MAKSIM CHMERKOVSKIY, MERYL DAVIS

Well, well, well, Julianne Hough has found herself in a bit of a pickle, hasn't she? The former Dancing with the Stars pro recently came under fire from some former co-stars when she returned this week as a judge with some harsh words for Maksim Chmerkovskiy. Julianne's critiques came during the Switch-Up Week where the pros were paired up with a celebrity who wasn't their normal partner. Maks was dancing with Winnie Cooper Danica McKellar instead of his regular teammate, Olympian Meryl Davis. Julianne was met with boos from the audience when she chastised Maks of his performance with Danica, saying, "You just had to phone it in so you could go back to Meryl." 

While Maks has tried to remain diplomatic about Julianne's comments, his fellow professional dancers and the reality show's contestants are coming to his defense…except for NeNe Leakes. NeNe is totally Team Hough because, well, you know, she loves drama and instigating and all that jazz. 

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Maks managed to keep his cool on the dance floor while denying Julianne's allegations. Danica also took offense to Julianne's statement. She told TODAY“That comment (from Julianne) was not true in the least. I don’t know why she said it. I can’t get inside her head.”

Pro Sharna Burgess concurred, telling the site, “I love Julianne but I’m not sure where that came from. All Maks did was be there for Danica to make sure she was getting through their routine. His performance level came down so he could make sure that she was OK. He took care of his partner. That’s what we do. It was really an unfair thing to say.”

Also weighing in was fellow dancer Cheryl Burke who added, “It was a little bit inappropriate. Some people have chemistry from the beginning. Some don’t, but it doesn’t mean that Maks wasn’t trying. He knows he’s going back to Meryl next week. It was kind of like, ‘What just happened?’”

It won't come as a surprise at all to learn the Neenster stood behind Julianne's comments. She commented, “I have to agree with Julianne. It felt like (Maks) wanted to be back with Meryl — he probably does! What professional dancer doesn’t want to dance with another professional dancer?”

As for Maks, he's over the hullabaloo. He doesn't agree with a lot of the show's ideas (or past judges' criticisms for that matter), so why would he put stock in Julianne's chatter? He admitted, “It doesn’t matter. It’s not about me. People want to be entertained when they tune in," continuing, "“We were brought back to where things were. I don’t like that. Just like (I don’t like) the switch-up or Disney Week or Outer Space Week. But it’s not my call. I just have to enjoy it. We’re all in the same boat together.”

#teammaks #justsaynotodisneyweek Seriously, Disney Week? 

TELL US-DO YOU THINK JULIANNE'S COMMENT HIT BELOW THE BELT? 

[Photo Credit: ABC]

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