Lea Thompson Remembers Horribly Sexist Comment Made By ‘DWTS’ Accomplice Artem Chigvintsev – The Boston Courier

Lea Thompson says that when her former “Dancing with the Stars” associate Artem Chigvintsev was arrested final month, she was stunned. However she was additionally reminded of a “weird” opinion he as soon as shared along with her.

“The one really crazy thing that he said to me was — that made me think about [his arrest] … I remember him telling me that men are much better than women,” Thompson recalled slightly over an hour into Monday’s episode of Cheryl Burke’s podcast “Sex, Lies and Spray Tan.”

Thompson was partnered with Chigvintsev in 2014 on Season 19 of the long-running dance competitors present.

The “Back to the Future” alum stated that when she questioned Chigvintsev about why he thought males have been higher than girls, he replied, “because they’re stronger.”

Thompson remembered rebuffing the remark by mentioning that girls give start, inflicting Burke to scoff in settlement.

When Burke requested the “Caroline in the City” star what brought about Chigvintsev to share this sexist opinion, Thompson was a bit stumped.

“I don’t know, but I just remember being like, ‘Oh my god, I can’t believe you’re saying that,’” Thompson stated. “That was such a weird thing to say. … But I just mostly felt like he was, like, super nervous and couldn’t show it, and so that kind of got, you know, transmitted to me.”

Chigvintsev was arrested in late August in Napa County, California, on suspicion of home violence. He was launched after posting bail set at $25,000. No sufferer was recognized, and it’s unclear if his spouse — WWE alum Nikki Bella, who goes by the identify Nikki Garcia professionally — was concerned within the incident.

Thompson additionally instructed Burke that she figured that Chigvintsev may need modified his opinion about girls after he met his future spouse, with whom he was partnered on Season 25 of “DWTS” in 2017.

The actor recalled watching a dance the 2 did collectively on the present wherein Garcia “flipped him over and threw him on the ground … you know, she did a wrestling move … you’re letting her show that she’s as strong as you! So, I thought that was kind of cool.”

Elsewhere within the episode, the “Switched at Birth” star did make a number of feedback about Chigvintsev being “intense” to work with.

“It was hard working with him because he was… it was his first year, and it was a big deal to him,” Thompson stated 47 minutes into the episode. “He was so intense. … It was so much more important to him than to me, honestly.”

Though Thompson chalks up a few of his ferocity to what she describes because the “Hunger Games”-like vibes on the set of “DWTS,” she additionally attributed a few of his angle in direction of his upbringing and dance coaching.

“Some of the things he would say to me were like, just being Russian — and being a ballet dancer and having Russian dance teachers who were always very difficult … it just got to be really hard,” Thompson stated. She defined that she was a ballet dancer and a contemporary dancer herself, however stated their dance backgrounds didn’t mesh.

But Thompson instructed Burke that she was stunned by Chigvintsev’s arrest, saying he did appear to be a “sweet” man regardless of his depth.

Burke — who has been an expert dancer on “DTWS” on and off for years — additionally expressed shock by Chigvintsev’s arrest on an Aug. 30 episode of her podcast.

“We used to live together in my family’s home in the Bay Area. It’s so shocking. I get kind of emotional. My heart goes out to everyone involved,” she stated, per Folks.

“It’s just really hard for me because he was — he’s my family,” Burke added on the time. “I don’t know what to say here other than I hope everybody’s okay.”

Need assistance? Within the U.S., name 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) for the Nationwide Home Violence Hotline.