James Van Der Beek, the teen heartthrob who starred in coming-of-age dramas at the dawn of the new millennium, shooting to fame playing the titular character in “Dawson’s Creek” has died at the age of 48.
“Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning. He met his final days with courage, faith, and grace. There is much to share regarding his wishes, love for humanity and the sacredness of time. Those days will come,” a statement from the actor’s family said.
“For now we ask for peaceful privacy as we grieve our loving husband, father, son, brother and friend.”
Van Der Beek revealed in 2024 that he was being treated for colorectal cancer.
Forever tied to ‘Dawson’s Creek’
A one-time theatre child, Van Der Beek would star in the movie “Varsity Blues” and on TV in “CSI: Cyber” as FBI Special Agent Elijah Mundo, but was forever connected to “Dawson’s Creek,” which ran from 1998-2003.
The series followed a high school group of friends as they learned about falling in love, creating real friendships and finding their footing in life.
Van Der Beek, than 20, played 15-year-old Dawson Leery, who aspired to be a director of Steven Spielberg quality.
“Dawson’s Creek,” with the moody theme song Paula Cole’s “I Don’t Want To Wait,” helped define The WB channel as a haven for teens and young adults who related to its hyper-articulate dialogue and frank talk about sexuality.
And it made household names of Van Der Beek, Joshua Jackson, Katie Holmes and Michelle Williams.
The show caused a stir when one of the teens embarked on a racy affair with a teacher 20 years his senior and when Holmes’ character climbs through Dawson’s bedroom window and they curl up together. Racier shows like “Euphoria” and “Sex Education” owe a debt to the programme.
Van Der Beek sometimes struggled to get out from under the shadow of the show but eventually leaned into lampooning himself, like on Funny Or Die videos and on Kesha’s music video for “Blow”, which included his laser gun battle with the pop star in a nightclub and dead unicorns.
“It’s tough to compete with something that was the cultural phenomenon that ‘Dawson’s Creek’ was,” he told Vulture in 2013.
“It ran for so long. That’s a lot of hours playing one character in front of people. So it’s natural that they associate you with that.”
After ‘Dawson’s Creek’
Some of his projects after “Dawson’s Creek” include co-creating and playing Wesley “Diplo” Pentz, a dull but likable music producer in the mockumentary satire on Viceland, “What Would Diplo Do?”
In 2019, he made it to the semifinals of ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” and played a balding, out-of-shape ex-boyfriend on “How I Met Your Mother.”
“The more you make fun of yourself and don’t try to go for any kind of respect, the more people seem to respect you,” he told Vanity Fair in 2011. “I’ve always been a clown trapped in a leading man’s body.”
Between 2003-2013, he made appearances in shows like “Criminal Minds” and “One Tree Hill.”
He played himself with a crackpot intensity in the Krysten Ritter-led ABC drama “Don’t Trust the B— in Apartment 23” and “Friends With Better Lives.”
He also appeared in a number of movies, such as Kevin Smith’s 2001 comedy “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back” and its 2019 sequel, “Jay and Silent Bob Reboot.” He also was in the Bret Easton Ellis adaptation of “The Rules of Attraction” in 2002 opposite Jessica Biel and Kate Bosworth.
In 2025, he was unmasked as Griffin on “The Masked Singer,” after singing a cover of John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” and “I Had Some Help” by Post Malone and Morgan Wallen.
Van Der Beek is survived by his wife, Kimberly, and six children, Olivia, Joshua, Annabel, Emilia, Gwendolyn and Jeremiah.
Additional sources • AP