‘Dancing With the Stars’: James Van Der Beek Reveals Why He’s ‘Grateful’ He Was Eliminated

James Van Der Beek is speaking out after his shocking Dancing With the Stars elimination. The Dawson’s Creek star was memorably eliminated in the semifinals round of competition last week in the same episode that he revealed his wife Kimberly’s tragic miscarriage. The actor, who had been one of the top performers throughout Season 28, admitted that while he did not understand why he had been eliminated before the finale, he was ultimately “grateful” it happened.

The ABC reality competition series wrapped up Monday with a star-studded finale, which featured Van Der Beek’s return in the audience. The show crowned The Bachelorette alum Hannah Brown as the Season 28 champion.

“I’ll tell you one thing, there’s not a trophy in the world that I wouldn’t give up to have had this week with them,” the Season 28 contestant told Us Weekly on Monday at the DWTS finale. “As much as I didn’t understand it at the time, being home was far and away the most important thing this week.”

Kimberly suffered a miscarriage the same week that the actor was eliminated from the competition, in an emotional moment that shook up the show’s fandom.

“[She] went through every expectant parent’s worst nightmare,” James announced just ahead of his elimination on the show. “We lost the baby. The little soul that we had expected to welcome into our family took a shortcut to whatever lies beyond.”

“You never know why these things happen, that’s what I’ve been telling my kids. All you know is that it brings you closer together, it breaks you open, it opens up your heart, it deepens your appreciation,” he added. “It makes you more human.”

A few days later, Kimberly opened up about there dangerous experience, revealing she “almost” lost her life.

“My biggest thing is my blood pressure,” Kimberly said on her Instagram Story last week. “I just get very light-headed very easily so I can’t really get up and walk around for more than a couple minutes right now. A lot of blood transfusion action this weekend, so I’m just taking it super easy trying to restore and build my blood.”

Since then the couple, and her children Olivia, 9, Joshua, 7, Annabel, 5, Emilia, 3, and Gwendolyn, 17 months are spending time together and “recovering.”

James told the outlet, “We really, really appreciated all the positive energy and thoughts and prayers that people have sent. In a time like that it’s exactly what you need.”

“So everybody who reached out to us either personally or on social media or reached out through other people that we know it’s just, it’s been an outpouring of support and we’ve just so appreciated it,” he added.