New light has been shed on Jesse Metcalfe’s side of the story after Sharna Burgess made claims about theirs Dancing with the stars partnership.
Representative for Housewives alum, 44, responded to Burgess that she reminded him of a “really tough” partner for Season 29 of the ABC dance competition on the podcast’s latest episode Elderly. (Burgess did not name Metcalfe, but he partnered with Burgess that season.)
“If he is referring to the time our client Jesse Metcalfe worked with Ms. Burgess four years ago, the only recollection is that they did not get along,” a rep told PEOPLE in a statement.
“Vague innuendo is not only thoughtless, it’s irrelevant,” the rep continued, before calling the professional dancer, 38, “very unprofessional” for publicly making “innuendo just to promote the first episode of her podcast.”
‘DWTS’ Alum Sharna Burgess Reflects On Previous ‘Rocky’ Partnership: ‘I Couldn’t Be Alone In A Room With Him’
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Sharna Burgess and Jesse Metcalfe perform on ‘Dancing with the Stars’ on October 12, 2020.
Eric McCandless/ABC
The rep also adds that Metcalfe personally “is not commenting on this. He’s taking the high road.”
A representative for Burgess did not respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
Sharna Burgess admits she was ‘shocked’ not asked back for ‘Dancing with the Stars’ season 32
In the debut episode of his new podcast on September 12 Elderly — which she co-hosts with her boyfriend Brian Austin Green and Randy Spelling — Burgess reflected on her journey after turning pro on the 2013 ABC dance competition.
“I think my victory with Bobby was the most explosive and controversial Dancing with the stars history and I got caught up in this vortex of hate because of that win which was really lame,” she said, referring to her Season 27 win with TV personality Bobby Bones.
She admitted she was in “this space of self-blame” when she wasn’t invited back the following season. After working through her issues during the show’s hiatus, Burgess returned to the ballroom for season 29 and partnered Metcalfe until they were eliminated in week four of the competition.
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Sharna Burgess and Jesse Metcalfe perform on ‘Dancing with the Stars’ on September 28, 2020.
Eric McCandless via Getty
‘Dancing with the Stars’: Mauricio Umansky, Jason Mraz and Alyson Hannigan among the actors for the 32nd season
“They brought me back the next season and I had a partner who was very difficult – and don’t say too much because I don’t want to,” she said. “I couldn’t be alone in a room with him after the first few weeks because of the things that happened.”
She added: “It was tough and we were eliminated very quickly.”
Following her claims, Metcalfe’s rep told PEOPLE in a statement, “There’s really no story here. Jesse is a gentleman and prefers to take the high road.”
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Dancing with the stars season 32 premieres Tuesday, September 26 at 8:00 PM ET on ABC and will air on Disney+ and Hulu.
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