James Van Der Beek, ‘Dawson’s Creek’ and ‘Varsity Blues’ star, dead at 48
James Van Der Beek, beloved "Dawson's Creek" and "Varsity Blues" star, has died at 48 after battling stage 3 colorectal cancer.
James Van Der Beek, best known for his starring roles in "Dawson's Creek" and "Varsity Blues," has died after a courageous battle with stage 3 colorectal cancer. He was 48.
"Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning," a statement read from Van der Beek's official Instagram account. "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. For now we ask for peaceful privacy as we grieve our loving husband, father, son, brother, and friend."
Born on March 8, 1977, in Cheshire, Connecticut, Van Der Beek made his acting debut on Broadway at 15 years old and went on to star in various on-stage productions.
His breakthrough role, however, came in 1997 when he landed the role of Dawson Leery on "Dawson’s Creek."
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"Two weeks in, I was doing an appearance in Seattle, and they said, 'There are going to be 100 people here.' And I said, 'There are not going to be 100 people.' And there were, like, 500, and they were screaming, and I was like, 'Whoa, this thing is going to be way bigger than I ever thought it was going to be,’" Van Der Beek recalled during a "Dawson’s Creek" panel in April 2025.
Throughout his career, Van Der Beek went on to star in various television shows and movies, including "Varsity Blues," "Texas Rangers," "Scary Movie," "How I Met Your Mother," "CSI" and more.
In 2019, he starred on the 28th season of "Dancing with the Stars."
While Van Der Beek was the poster child for the all-American, boy next-door, his life was shadowed by various challenges.
In 2020, the actor and his wife, Kimberly – along with their six children – relocated from Los Angeles to Texas.
"In the last ten months, we’ve had two late pregnancy losses, each of which put @vanderkimberly in the hospital," the actor wrote on Instagram at the time. "We spent Christmas break thinking she had a tumor (the doctor was wrong, thank god), a business colleague I hired hijacked the project and stabbed me in the back, I was prematurely booted off a reality dancing show I was favored to win in front of the whole world, and my mom died."
JAMES VAN DER BEEK MISTOOK CANCER SYMPTOMS FOR PROBLEMS WITH HIS DIET
"And a shut-down," he continued, referring to COVID-19. "All of that led to some drastic changes in our lives, and dreams, and priorities... and landed us here. Overflowing with profound gratitude today."
A few years later, however, Van Der Beek would be hit with the hardest hurdle of all.
In November 2024, Van Der Beek — who was officially diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer in August 2023 — first revealed his diagnosis in a statement to People: "I have colorectal cancer. I’ve been privately dealing with this diagnosis and have been taking steps to resolve it, with the support of my incredible family."
"There’s reason for optimism, and I’m feeling good," he added.
Shortly after the announcement, Van Der Beek took his personal social media account to further address the news. "'It is cancer…' Each year, approximately 2 billion people around the world receive this diagnosis. And I’m one of them," he wrote in an Instagram post.
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He continued, "There’s no playbook for how [to] announce these things, but I’d planned on talking about it at length with People magazine at some point soon… to raise awareness and tell my story on my own terms. But that plan had to be altered early this morning when I was informed that a tabloid was going to run with the news."
He explained that he had been "dealing with this privately," focusing on "getting treatment and dialing in my overall health with greater focus than ever before."
He also shared, "I’m in a good place and feeling strong. It’s been quite the initiation, and I’ll tell you more when I’m ready."
"Nothing about this process has occurred on my preferred timeline… But we roll with it, taking each surprise as a signpost, pointing us toward a greater destiny than we would have discovered without divine intervention."
In March 2025, Van Der Beek talked about the "hardest year" of his life and explained how he leaned on his faith in times of trouble.
"When I was younger, I used to define myself as an actor, which was never all that fulfilling, and then I became a husband… it was much better, and then I became a father… that was the ultimate," he said to his 1.6 million followers on Instagram on March 8.
JAMES VAN DER BEEK MISTOOK CANCER SYMPTOMS FOR PROBLEMS WITH HIS DIET
The father-of-six pointed out that during his cancer battle he was forced to "look my own mortality in the eye."
"I had to come nose to nose with death," he remarked. "And all those definitions that I cared so deeply about were stripped from me."
"I was away for treatment, so I could no longer be a husband who was helpful to my wife," Van Der Beek continued. "I could no longer be a father who could pick up his kids and put them to bed and be there for them. I could not be a provider because I wasn’t working."
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During his cancer journey, the actor admitted he began to question if he was "just a too-skinny, weak guy, alone in an apartment with cancer… what am I?"
"I am worthy of God’s love simply because I exist," Van Der Beek shared. "And if I’m worthy of God’s love, shouldn’t I also be worthy of my own?"
"As I move through this healing portal toward recovery," Van Der Beek said. "I wanted to share that with you because that revelation that came to me was in no small part to all the prayers and the love that had been directed toward me."
In September 2025, Van Der Beek pulled out of a highly anticipated "Dawson's Creek" reunion due to ongoing health issues. However, the actor made a surprise virtual appearance at the charity event.
"I have been looking forward to this night for months and months ever since my angel Michelle Williams said she was putting it together," Van Der Beek said in a video played for the audience, which fans later posted on social media. "I can't believe I'm not there. I can't believe I don't get to see my castmates, my beautiful cast, in person."
"And just – I wanted to stand on that stage and thank every single person in the theater for being here tonight," he continued. "From the cast to the crew to everybody who's doing anything and has been so generous, and especially every single last one of you – you are the best fans in the world."
"Thank you for coming. It's just absolutely humbling just how much you did for this night, and I just want to say thank you. Thank you to every single person here," he added.
In December 2025, Van Der Beek sat down with "Today's" Craig Melvin and opened up about his health.
"I feel much, much better than I did a couple months ago," Van Der Beek said at the time. "It's been a longer journey than I ever thought it would be. It's required more of me — more patience, more discipline, more strength than I knew I had. I knew I was strong — I didn't know I was this strong. But I feel good."
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