Even before his August 2024 arrest for domestic violence, Artem Chigvintsev was not asked to be part of the Dancing With the Stars Season 33 cast. Still, he said on the Tuesday, February 25, episode of the Glamorous Grind podcast that he “would love” to return in the future.
The charges against Chigvintsev were dropped in September 2024, and he has maintained his innocence. However, the damage to his public image had already been done. His future on DWTS remains unclear, which is admittedly scary for the pro dancer.
“Am I happy overall and, like, looking forward? Like, no, because it’s just a whole bunch of unknown and unknown [does] not make you happy,” he admitted. However, he was optimistic about other parts of his life. “I’m happy that I have my son,” he said. “I’m happy that my mom is here. I’m happy that I’d be able to see that relationship. I’m happy that I’m still OK. I’m happy about that.”
After the arrest, Chigvintsev and wife Nikki Garcia divorced. Before the split was finalized in November, they filed restraining orders against each other (which were later dropped). In her restraining order filing, Garcia revealed that her now-ex-husband was “cut from the upcoming season” of DWTS one week before his arrest, according to documents viewed by People.
“He had begun work at a construction job and felt it was beneath him,” Garcia alleged in her lawsuit. “Since being cut from Dancing with the Stars, Artem had been growing increasingly angry, snapping at me, and yelling. We had discussions about his need to control his anger.”
Months later, Chigvintsev and Garcia share custody of their 4-year-old son, Matteo, and the Russia native shared that coparenting has been “doable” for them. “Obviously, both parties put the best foot forward [to] accommodate the kid. [At] the end of the day, what’s best for Matteo is best for me, right?” he said.
Regarding his future with Garcia, Chigvintsev isn’t ruling out the possibility that they could one day be friends. “I mean never, say never,” he revealed. “But there’s definitely needed to be certain conversation and certain things, acknowledgement of certain things. Yeah, I believe everybody can end up being friends.”
