The pro dancer was cut from the ABC competition series in August 2024 after his arrest for alleged corporal injury to a spouse.

Artem Chigvintsev reflects on splitting from Nikki Garcia and *DWTS *in same week: ‘It was like a bad dream’

The pro dancer was cut from the ABC competition series in August 2024 after his arrest for alleged corporal injury to a spouse.

By Kathleen Perricone

April 20, 2026 8:30 p.m. ET

Artem Chigvintsev and Nikki Garcia in 2019. Credit:

Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic

- *Dancing With the Stars* alum Artem Chigvintsev is opening up about how his 2024 arrest affected his personal and professional life.

- Chigvintsev ultimately did not face domestic violence charges, however, his wife Nikki Garcia did file for divorce.

- The couple shares a 5-year-old son, Matteo, who Chigvintsev remains focused on as he figures out his next chapter.

Life as Artem Chigvintsev knew it changed completely in just one week when he was arrested for alleged corporal injury to spouse in August 2024 and subsequently cut from *Dancing With the Stars* after nine seasons.

The following month, his wife of two years, former WWE wrestler Nikki Garcia, filed for divorce; and although Chigvintsev ultimately did not face domestic violence charges, the damage was done, both personally and professionally.

“I had to completely switch off ‘me’ and be in this [survival] mode,” Chigvintsev reveals in a two-part interview on *The Penthouse With Peta* podcast. “There was no way of processing everything… It was like a bad dream, all of it.”

In part one, Chigvintsev opened up to *DWTS* alums Peta Murgatroyd and Sharna Burgess about the “giant void” left by the ABC dance competition. “It's a constant... and that never really goes away,” he said.

Artem Chigvintsev won season 29 of 'DWTS' with Kaitlyn Bristowe.

Eric McCandless via Getty

On the April 20 episode, he delved into his split from Garcia, with whom he shares a 5-year-old son, Matteo.

Looking back, Chigvintsev believes everything happened for a reason — and the way it went down “needed to happen” for his marriage to ultimately come to an end.

“I don’t think I would ever [have] left that relationship,” admitted Chigvintsev, “just because I was raised differently. You [are] raised to work through things and, like, my parents are together.”

Artem Chigvintsev and his son Matteo.

Artem Chigvintsev/Instagram

Even if the marriage was “unhealthy,” he was willing to “sacrifice” himself for the best interest of Matteo, explained Chigvintsev. “I want my kid to have a full family. I'm a big believer that my kid needs to have both parents present… Let's say I go meet somebody, that person will never have that love for my son like his mom does for him… that's an organic feeling.”

Burgess, a stepmother to husband Brian Austin Green’s three children with Megan Fox, interjected. “I love my stepkids deeply,” she told Chigvintsev. “I would walk in front of a bus for them.”

“You are the unicorn,” he replied. “That is not normal, that is not typical.”

Chigvintsev’s close bond with Matteo is also why he has yet to return to dancing professionally on television. Before his nine seasons on *DWTS * — during which he won the Mirrorball trophy with *The Bachelorette* star Kaitlyn Bristowe — the Russian pro made a name for himself on *Strictly Come Dancing*, the British reality competition that inspired *DWTS*.

Artem Chigvintsev with Melora Hardin on 'DWTS' in 2021.

ABC/Christopher Willard

After saying he “didn’t want to,” Chigvintsev clarified, “I don’t know if I *can* because of my son and what [it] will involve, because I just know myself… you learn a lot of things about yourself because you are put in this uncomfortable situation where you you start learning yourself, how you act and how you react. And there's one thing I've learned: I can't do multiple things at once. I can’t multitask.”

When he was on *DWTS* and *Strictly Come Dancing*, he had “no life but that,” as every day was consumed with rehearsals and performing.

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“So, I don't think I can do that to my son,” Chigvintsev said. “I don't want to half ass [the show] and I don't want to half ass [being a father]. But if they would, I’ll definitely entertain.”

Check out Artem Chigvintsev's interview on *The Penthouse With Peta *below.

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Source: “EW Celebrity”