‘Dancing With the Stars’: Erin Andrews Reacts to James Van Der Beek’s Comments About Her, Tom Bergeron

Erin Andrews had the sweetest response for James Van Der Beek after the former Dancing With the Stars competitor called himself “lucky” to have competed on the ABC show before Andrews and her co-host Tom Bergeron were replaced by Tyra Banks ahead of the upcoming Season 29. After news broke last month that Bergeron and Andrews would not be returning for the new season on Sept. 14, Van Der Beek gushed over his experiences with the two longtime hosts while competing alongside Emma Slater in 2019 in an interview with Us Weekly.

After Van Der Beek’s kind words, Bergeron had tagged Andrews in his initial response to the Dawson’s Creek actor’s interview last week, writing, “Thanks, buddy. I think I can speak for ⁦@ErinAndrews⁩ that WE felt lucky to be there when YOU were on!” Andrews saw the message from her former co-stars, thanking the actor for the time she got to spend with him and his family and jokingly jockeying for a role in a Varsity Blues sequel.

“I loved Tom and Erin,” Van Der Beek said in the interview Friday. “That is such a crazy experience that show. I mean, it’s 100% live. It’s just a dance floor and a couple of judges and a dance thing you learned six days prior. One-shot, no do-overs, no nothing.” Recalling how chaotic things would be while filming the live show, the actor said the two hosts were an anchor point.

“In the middle of that was this guy who was so quick on his feet, so funny and so big-hearted,” he recalled. “Then you would go to Erin, who just kept it a hundred percent real and also equally quick on her feet and just as big of a heart.” He added he counts himself “lucky” he was cast on Dancing With the Stars before their exit, “‘Cause I really, really appreciated just how they approached it and what they were for us in the eye of that storm.”

Bergeron played a special part in a moment with Van Der Beek’s mom, Melinda, who died in July. “After the contemporary [dance], [Bergeron] looked over, saw her and put a hand in my back and just kinda nudged me to go over knowing that we had the time,” the father-of-five remembered. “And so I did and I gave her a hug right afterward and it was my top memories. I’m always grateful to Tom for creating that moment.”