Win or lose, Corey Feldman stands unwaveringly by his *Dancing With the Stars* partner, Jenna Johnson. The *Stand By Me* alum took to social media to express heartfelt gratitude for the ballroom dancer after the pair, alongside NBA star Baron Davis and his partner Britt Stewart, were eliminated during the ABC show’s September 23 episode.
“Thank U, Jenna!” Corey, 51, commented beneath Jenna’s September 24 Instagram post. “You were an absolute joy to work with. I’m so sorry for any negativity the media is using to spin a false narrative that our time together was anything less than enjoyable.”
Addressing rumors that he had been uncooperative during rehearsals, the *Goonies* actor elaborated, “And you know as well as I do that I was there seven days a week for the past three weeks, doing everything in my power to give you my best, even if the judges couldn’t see it.”
He added warmly to Jenna, “God bless your family. Keep dancing the dream.”
In turn, Jenna reciprocated with kind words in her initial post, writing, “Our time together was cut short, but I am SO grateful for the incredible weeks we did get to share!!”
“Thank you for the giggles every day in rehearsal, thank you for the hard work, and thank you for sharing your life lessons and memories with me,” she continued. “I’ll cherish our friendship forever. Never stop dancing.”
Earlier in the month, whispers of discord surfaced when Jenna revealed that Corey had been absent following the cast announcement on *Good Morning America* on September 3. “So many people have been asking, ‘Where are your TikToks with Corey? What’s happening?’” Jenna shared on her Instagram Story on September 6, as reported by *Us Weekly*. “To be completely honest, I actually haven’t seen him since *Good Morning America*.”
Though the two happily reunited days later, with Jenna clarifying that Corey had been unavailable for rehearsals due to prior commitments, speculation about behind-the-scenes tension persisted. This was further fueled when her brother-in-law, Maksim Chmerkovskiy—a season 18 winner of *DWTS*—hinted at challenges Jenna faced in the studio.
“Obviously, Jenna has a bit of an uphill climb with Corey, which is easy for everyone to say from the outside,” he told the *Daily Mail* in a September 23 interview, “but I know she’s having a much more difficult time with this entire thing, to the point that it’s been really tough for her.”
Given that Jenna had previously claimed victory with *The Bachelor*’s Joey Graziadei, Maksim—whose brother Val Chmerkovskiy is partnered with influencer Alix Earle this season—urged people to “put some respect on the name.”
“You’re talking about a reigning champ,” he said of his sister-in-law, who shares a 2-year-old son, Rome, with Val. “That show requires you to be able to tell grown adults what to do and stand your ground.”
Ultimately, reflecting on his brief stint with Jenna, Corey believed she “deserved better.”
“I feel really terrible,” he said in his farewell remarks on the September 23 episode of *DWTS*. “She was the queen from last year, so she deserves to be the champ every year in my book because she’s truly exceptional.”
