Dancing With the Stars pros Peta Murgatroyd and Maksim Chmerkovskiy have one of Hollywood’s most celebrated marriages, but it started with a brutal first impression. Murgatroyd confessed she initially thought her future husband was an “a-hole” with a “big ass ego”—a revelation that perfectly frames their passionate, on-again, off-again journey to becoming a family of five.
In the world of ballroom dance, few couples command the stage like Peta Murgatroyd and Maksim Chmerkovskiy. Their chemistry, talent, and dramatic love story have captivated Dancing With the Stars fans for over a decade. But long before the televised romances and heartbreaking splits, their first meeting was far from a fairytale. In a refreshingly candid interview, Murgatroyd revealed that her initial take on her future husband was anything but charitable.
During a joint interview with Access Hollywood, Chmerkovskiy asked Murgatroyd for her first impression of him. Without missing a beat, she delivered a line that perfectly encapsulates their fiery dynamic: “I thought that you were an a-hole.”
The Broadway Meeting That Sparked a Decade-Long Drama
While their romance famously blossomed under the bright lights of the DWTS ballroom, the couple first crossed paths in 2009 as cast members of the Broadway production Burn the Floor. At the time, both were involved with other people, creating an environment of professional distance tinged with undeniable tension.
Murgatroyd elaborated on her blunt assessment, acknowledging she also found him “very tall and handsome,” but couldn’t get past his demeanor. “I was like, ‘This guy’s coming in with this big ass ego,'” she explained. Chmerkovskiy, known for his confident and sometimes controversial persona on DWTS, took the jab in stride, admitting with a laugh, “I know, I know. That’s why I didn’t want to ask this question.”
This early dynamic—a clash of strong personalities and unspoken attraction—set the stage for one of the most-watched relationships in reality television history. It wasn’t until Murgatroyd joined the cast of Dancing With the Stars in 2011 that the sparks truly began to fly.
Why a Breakup Became an Inevitable Breakthrough
The pair’s path to the altar was famously turbulent. They began dating and went public with their relationship in 2012, only to break up a year later in a move that shocked their fans. Murgatroyd confessed, “It broke my heart.” However, Chmerkovskiy offered a surprising, and deeply insightful, explanation for his cold feet.
“I wanted to marry you right away,” he told Murgatroyd during the interview. “I knew this right away. And that’s why at some point when I actually came to that realization like, ‘This is it.’ That’s when we broke up.” He described the feeling as “an allergic reaction to something,” a moment of overwhelming clarity that paradoxically caused him to pull away.
Their history is a well-documented timeline of passion and pause:
- 2009: First meet on Broadway in Burn the Floor.
- 2012: Begin dating while co-starring on Dancing With the Stars.
- 2013: A sudden and public breakup leaves fans and Murgatroyd heartbroken.
- 2014: The couple quietly reconciles, rekindling their romance away from the spotlight.
- 2015: Chmerkovskiy proposes on stage during a performance of Sway: A Dance Trilogy.
- 2017: They marry in a lavish ceremony at Oheka Castle in New York, a detail shared in a look back by PEOPLE.
This journey from a negative first impression to a shocking breakup and an eventual fairytale wedding is what makes their story so compelling. It’s a testament to a connection that was too strong to be denied, even by their own fears and hesitations.
From Ballroom Rivals to Life Partners
Today, the couple’s past drama is a source of humor and strength. “We can laugh about it now,” Murgatroyd noted, highlighting how far they’ve come. Their relationship has evolved from a workplace rivalry into a powerful partnership. They are now parents to three sons—Shai, Rio, and Milan—and have successfully transitioned from dance floor competitors to collaborative partners in life and business.
Murgatroyd’s “a-hole” comment isn’t just a funny anecdote; it’s a window into the authenticity that defines their bond. They never pretended to be perfect, and their willingness to share the messy, complicated parts of their love story is precisely why audiences remain so invested. From a Broadway stage to the DWTS ballroom and now a bustling family home, their dance continues, more in sync than ever.
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