Jackson Olson’s week on Dancing With the Stars took an unexpected turn after one social media comment about Guillermo Rodriguez triggered backlash that quickly spread far beyond the original post.
The controversy began after Loco Beach Coconuts player Erik Ostberg recreated Guillermo and Witney Carson’s Yacht Rock Night routine.
The recreation included the memorable moment where Guillermo opened his shirt to reveal the words “Dancing 4 the People.”
Jackson then jumped into the comments and questioned how Erik had managed to perform the dance better than Guillermo after only two hours of rehearsal.
The remark included a laughing emoji, suggesting Jackson may have intended it as a joke.
But many DWTS viewers didn’t see it that way.
Screenshots began circulating before Jackson deleted the comment, with fans accusing him of unnecessarily putting down Guillermo — a contestant who has repeatedly acknowledged that he entered the competition with very little dance experience.
The reaction became particularly intense because Guillermo has emerged as one of Season 35’s most popular underdogs despite consistently receiving some of the lowest scores from the judges.
But according to subsequent reports, the reaction may not have been limited to fans online.
An unnamed source claimed that several Dancing With the Stars professionals were unhappy with Jackson’s comment and encouraged him to remove it.
The report specifically said Jackson’s own professional partner, Emma Slater, was among those who believed deleting the remark was the right move.
There is no indication that producers formally punished Jackson over the incident.
In fact, separate source-based reporting claimed producers viewed the attention as controversy surrounding the competition rather than something requiring disciplinary action. Those behind-the-scenes claims have not been independently confirmed by ABC.
The situation reportedly affected Jackson more deeply than viewers initially realized.
Source-based reports said he regretted how the comment had been received and became increasingly anxious as criticism continued spreading online and into rehearsals.
Then came the public apology.
Jackson posted a video with Guillermo set to Hannah Montana’s “Nobody’s Perfect,” with both contestants eventually appearing together and dancing in matching sunglasses.
Jackson apologized “from the bottom of my heart” for the negativity his comment created and made it clear that he cared about Guillermo.
He finished by saying he wanted everyone to return their attention to what the competition is supposed to be about — dancing.
Emma publicly supported the reconciliation as well, commenting positively on the video after Jackson and Guillermo appeared together.
And the strongest indication that there was no lasting feud came from Guillermo himself.
Rather than distancing himself from Jackson, Guillermo willingly participated in the apology video, smiling and dancing beside him.
Another report, citing an unnamed insider, went even further and claimed Jackson and Guillermo privately spoke for roughly 30 minutes in Guillermo’s trailer before appearing together publicly.
That account described the conversation as an attempt to clear the air and reinforce that there were no personal hard feelings, although those specific private details have not been independently verified.
Both men then returned to the ballroom for Mariah Carey Night and survived the elimination.
Jackson and Emma earned 21 out of 30, while Guillermo and Witney received 13 — the lowest judges’ score of the night — but both couples advanced while Ciara Miller and Brandon Armstrong were eliminated.
What began as one quickly deleted social media comment therefore became much bigger than Jackson likely expected.
It created fan backlash, reportedly prompted uncomfortable conversations behind the scenes, and eventually led Jackson to apologize both publicly and, according to reports, privately.
But the most important development may be what happened afterward.
Guillermo appeared beside Jackson, Emma publicly supported the reconciliation, and both contestants moved forward in the competition — suggesting that whatever tension existed around the comment, the people at the center of it are now trying to leave the drama behind.
