‘Dancing with the Stars 21’: Alek Skarlatos injured in dress rehearsal; status unclear

Has the injury bug claimed another on “Dancing with the Stars” this season? It may be a little too early to know for certain right now, but the prognosis is not particularly great for Alek Skarlatos.

As first reported by TMZ, the famed train hero was rehearsing a routine with his Switch Up partner Emma Slater earlier today when she accidentally landed an elbow right against his nose. As of right now, it is unclear as to if he will be able to go on and perform, as he needs to be checked over. (Personally, we’d say that we are leaning towards it happening.)

There is a part of us that inevitably wants to blame this injury on the Switch Up twist, which forces Stars to work on a routine with a different pro after spending so much time getting to know someone else. After all, you don’t have the weeks’ worth of history performing with this person, so maybe you don’t understand one another’s movements in the way that you would someone like Alek’s partner Lindsay Arnold, who he has worked with for over a month at this point.

However, it feels in many ways completely unfair to place the blame strictly on something like a twist. We don’t love the Switch Up in general, but this feels more like a freak accident that occurred while two people were trying to perfect the routine. If Alek is unable to go, it is certainly possible that his rehearsal routine could be scored instead. If there is a rehearsal to view, this is the precedent for the show. The lack of is what led to Kim Zolciak having to withdraw.

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