James Van Der Beek died at the age of 48 back in February after battling cancer for over two years, but he is set to appear on the 2026 TV schedule because he has a role in the Legally Blonde prequel series, Elle. So, now that we're approaching the show's premiere, the late actor was sweetly honored by Elle’s showrunner, Caroline Dries, at the premiere this week, and man, it’s got me emotional.

Van Der Beek, who’s the most beloved for his role on Dawson’s Creek and Varsity Blues, went back to the 1990s (Elle is set in 1995) to play a mayoral candidate named Dean Wilson. Here’s how the Elle showrunner paid tribute to the actor while on stage during the premiere:

It sounds like Van Der Beek was an absolute ray of sunshine on set despite his health struggles. I’m so happy Caroline Dries took the time to share her experience with the actor while Elle was in production last year. It’s further proof that the world lost a wonderful man who really seemed to soak up every last moment of his life before he lost his battle with cancer. It’s so touching that she took the time to celebrate his good character and affirm his legacy.

James Van Der Beek was diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer in August 2023, which wasn't made public until November 2024. While living with the serious disease, the actor didn't stop working. He appeared on Season 13 of The Masked Singer, a couple episodes of Overcompensating and the thriller film The Gates. Elle’s release marks the last role he worked on before his death. He also left behind six children whom he shares with wife Kimberly Brook.

Elle follows 16-year-old Elle Woods before her stint at Harvard. After establishing the perfect life as a high schooler in Los Angeles, her parents throw her a curveball when they decide to move to Seattle, Washington. Suddenly, Elle finds herself as a fish out of water in a place where dark colors, grunge and flannels are all the rage… not hot pink!

The show is produced by the original Elle Woods, Reese Witherspoon, who previously paid tribute to James Van Der Beek, following his death. She called him an “extraordinary, talented man who also showed great kindness and grace in every action”. Everyone truly speaks so highly of him, and it's got me in my feels.

You can see James Van Der Beek in Elle, which will be available with an Amazon Prime subscription on July 1.

In February 2026, pop culture lost a real one when teen heartthrob-turned-adult heartthrob James Van Der Beek passed away at the age of 48 as a result of colorectal cancer. The news was hard to hear for many fans, with the actor's adoring wife Kimberly and their children obviously taking it the hardest. As it usually goes, holidays and other annual observances allow for those grieving to look back and extoll cherished memories, and Father's Day 2026 is no exception.

Less than a week after celebrating daughter Gwen's eighth birthday, Kimberly Van Der Beek took to Instagram to share some love for her late hubby by pointing out in photographic form how much of a loving father he was...and perhaps still is. As she put it:

James and Kimberly Van Der Beek got married back in August 2010, following a divorce from his first wife Heather McComb. The couple went on to have six children, with the youngest (Jeremiah) being born in October 2021. Before that, they sired Olivia (born Sept. 2010), Joshua (March 2012), Annabel Leah (January 2014), Emilia (March 2016), and the aforementioned Gwendolyn (June 2018). Emilia is the one who shared that heartbreakingly mature video honoring the actor's birthday.

To be expected, the IG post is filled with pictures of JVDB and each of his adorable kiddos. The past four months have no doubt been as mournful as any they've experienced thus far, but hopefully all the pictures taken over the years can keep the best memories of their father intact for many years to come.

Also to be expected, Kimberly Van Der Beek's garnered a lot of heartfelt sympathy and love from fans and followers, and more than a few famous faces. One of those commenters was Dawson's Creek vet Mary-Margaret Humes, who portrayed the titular teen's mother Gail Leery for all six seasons. Here's the touching message she shared:

She may have only played his mother on TV, but Humes' words still carry that same kind of parental love. When fellow co-star Joshua Jackson opened up about his feelings after Van Der Beek's death, he addressed how being a father himself compounded the grief he was already experiencing for his longtime friend. Here's hoping the Doctor Odyssey vet is having a good Father's Day in the meantime.

Some of the other celebs who commented on Kimberly Van Der Beek's post ranged from Tracker's Dave Annable to Dateline NBC's Andrea Canning to former WWE diva Stacy Keibler.

• DAVE ANNABLE: The best father there ever was
• RICKI LAKE: Truly. Loving you all. ❤️
• ANDREA CANNING: 🩵🩵🩵
• NIKKI REED: The best of the best forever. We love you so much James🙏🏼❤️✨Wrapping all of your little people in the warmest hugs today, and always. ❤️❤️❤️
• STACY KEIBLER: The best of the best. I love you all 💕

For anyone in need of a quick burst of "awww cute" comments, go ahead and swipe through all the adorable pictures in Kimberly Van Der Beek's post below.

The death of a loved one is a pain that can never be truly healed over, but here's hoping that James' passion and spirit can live on through those who miss him most on this Father's Day.

Alfonso Ribeiro remembered his dear friend and late actor James Van Der Beek in a recent podcast appearance and shared the lasting gift he received from spending time with him on his deathbed. While he didn't take a physical gift from him, his takeaway of being surrounded by the people he loves proved valuable.

Riberiro appeared on Joy 101 with Hoda Kotb ahead of Dancing With The Stars return to the 2026 TV schedule, and talked a bit about sharing James Van Der Beek's final moments. After his passing, the actor and host talked with his wife and began plotting his own plans for his eventual death:

Given how upset he was in his public statement at the time of Van Der Beek's passing, it's good to hear Alfonso Ribeiro came out on the other side with something positive. Losing a friend, especially one as close as Van Der Beek was to him, is tough.

James Van Der Beek's public battle with colorectal cancer received a lot of attention in Hollywood, with actors like Paul Walter Hauser offering to help with his bills for treatment. A GoFundMe for the family ended up bringing in millions of dollars, as actors and creatives alike helped bring them out of debt following all of his treatments.

Of course, there were also critics, some of whom questioned why a family with a multi-million dollar home was crowd-funding to pay medical bills rather than downsizing. While there were complaints, the crowd-funding effort still received a lot of support from the general public, and it seems any controversy tied to it has largely fallen off.

While James Van Der Beek is gone, he still has an appearance on the way. Van Der Beek's final performance will be on the Legally Blonde prequel Elle, which launches on July 1st for those with a Prime subscription. It'll be one final chance for audiences to appreciate the late actor, who rose to prominence on Dawson's Creek in the late '90s.

As for Ribeiro, he's set to return as co-host on Dancing With The Stars when it returns to ABC in the fall with Season 35. This season will be a big one, with a new spinoff airing ahead of time called Dancing With The Stars: The Next Pro. Surprisingly, that series tapped the latest winner, Robert Irwin, to host the series, meaning Ribeiro and Julianne Hough get to kick back and relax until the fall season rolls around.

Dancing With The Stars: The Next Pro premieres on July 13th. It'll be a good way to fill time as we wait for the flagship show's return in the fall, and for Alfonso Ribeiro to be back on television.

Tragedy sadly struck earlier this year when James Van Der Beek passed away following a battle with colorectal cancer. Van Der Beek notably has a few posthumous projects, and that includes his final film, the 2026 movie schedule entry The Gates. Directed by John Burr, the thriller sees Van Der Beek play a man who antagonizes had him up against three friends after they witness him commit a murder in his house. Ahead of the film's release, Burr is getting real about his logic for casting Van Der Beek, and talk about an unexpected answer.

James Van Der Beek was known for leading the cast of Dawson’s Creek, as he played the titular character. Throughout his career, Van Der Beek made a name for himself play relatively good guys. Based on what The Gates' John Burr told Far Out Magazine, he wanted to flip the script on that:

While Van Der Beek’s iconic TV character, Dawson, isn't perfect, he's still an all-around nice guy, and that can sum up a number of the late actor's other roles. There aren't too many villainous roles in Van Der Beek's body of work, with rare examples being the time he played a chilling killer in two episodes of Criminal Minds and a ruthless CEO in Law & Order: Criminal Intent. So, with that in mind, I wouldn't have expected Van Der Beek to take on such a Big Bad role or for someone like Burr to cast him in one since he rarely plays that type.

The notion of Van Der Beek playing Jacob, a malevolent pastor who weaponizes his faith to get away with murder, is somewhat surreal, given his work. Still, Burr was interested in a creating a villain that was layered like the protagonists. And, based on Burr's recent comments, it sounds like Van Der Beek was the right actor for the role:

Faith apparently plays a big role in The Gates, and it seems to be a driving force behind the actions of Jacob and other authority figures. I'm truly impressed to hear that the late Van Der Beek was able to portray Jacob not as a one-sided villain but as a man containing multitudes. It seems this role also resonated with Van Der Beek personally due to his own relationship with religion, as Burr explained:

There have indeed been instances in which actors have brought aspects of their personal experiences to roles, and it seems James Van Der Beek used that to great effect in this case. Not only has the late actor been praised by his director, but his The Gates co-star, Mason Gooding, shared kind word as well. Gooding said that working with the Varsity Blues actor was a great learning experience and one that helped him further develop as an artist.

As a whole, the cast also paid tribute to Van Der Beek on social media after his passing with heartwarming BTS photos and touching captions on working with him. It's easy to imagine how grateful they all feel, in hindsight, to have gotten to know and work with the fan-favorite actor.

As heartbreaking as it is that James Van Der Beek is no longer with us, it's comforting that he's receiving his flowers from his collaborators. While Van Der Beek's final movie role being a villainous character surprises me, I'm eager to see what kind of layers he brings to Jacob.

We may only be three months into 2026, but the year has already dealt some pretty devastating blows when it comes to losing Hollywood icons. One of the most heartbreaking deaths so far this year is James Van Der Beek, who passed away in February at 48, following a battle with stage 3 colorectal cancer, just weeks before his 49th birthday. Plenty of fans and celebrities alike have paid tribute to Van Der Beek, and his Dawson’s Creek co-star Joshua Jackson is the latest one.

Van Der Beek and Jackson starred on the hit WB drama as best friends and occasional rivals Dawson Leery and Pacey Witter, respectively, for all six seasons. Dawson’s Creek is arguably one of the best teen dramas ever and has shaped not only its fans but also its stars. It’s been nearly a month since the series lost one of its own, and Jackson reflected on losing his co-star and friend while appearing on Today:

Having to come to terms with the death of someone that you practically grew up with, or at the very least, went through a very formative time in your life with, especially in the public eye, is hard. These are Jackson’s first public comments about Van Der Beek since his death, and it’s clear that he will continue to grapple with this loss for a while, both as a father, a friend, and a colleague.

Jackson also looked back at his time on Dawson’s Creek with Van Der Beek after being shown a clip from the series. While talking to Today co-anchor Craig Melvin, who conducted an interview with the late actor last year, Jackson praised his late co-star for being an all-around good man. And I am truthfully very close to tears:

Even though there is proof that Dawson was the absolute worst on Dawson’s Creek, it’s evident that Van Der Beek was the complete opposite. It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost a month since he died, but with the way that Jackson, other Dawson’s Creek stars, celebrities, and fans are mentioning him, his memory will surely live on forever. Jackson also partnered with the NHL and AstraZeneca for the company's Get Body Checked Against Cancer campaign, highlighting the importance of getting screened for cancer. So not only is he telling stories about Van Der Beek, but Jackson is making sure the fight against cancer continues.

Thanks to streaming, fans have another way to keep Van Der Beek’s memory alive. Dawson’s Creek is available with a Disney+ subscription, with the iconic opening theme song “I Don’t Want to Wait” by Paula Cole. Just like Jackson, his death is definitely hitting people in a variety of different ways. But people are also coming together to remember him and watch him, so it’s almost like he never left.

Earlier this year, James Van Der Beek sadly passed away at the age of 48 following a battle with colorectal cancer, which he was diagnosed with in 2023. Tributes to Van Der Beek have since poured in from fans and celebrities alike. At the same time, the Van Der Beek family continue to process their loss. James’ wife, Kimberly – who he married in 2010 – has been sharing her memories of him. She did that again on her late husband’s birthday by publishing photos, and she posted a video featuring one of her daughters.

The late lead actor of the Dawson’s Creek cast would’ve turned 49 on March 8, and his family seems to be choosing to celebrate the occasion instead of mourn. Kimberly Van Der Beek took to her Instagram stories to share a wide range of photos and videos, which represent memories of James. Some posts show him hanging out with any of his six kids, while others show him working or just relaxing. Kimberly also shared a photo of herself alongside her hubby, and dropped a sweet caption about missing him “tremendously”:

Such posts are certainly enough to get a person in their feels, and it’s honestly amazing to see the sheer number of posts Kimberly Van Der Beek has posted, as of this writing. Something that really hits hard is the fact that not only is she now without a husband, but their kids are now also without a husband. Despite that, if these posts exemplify anything, it’s that James was able to make memories with his little ones:

What really got me, though, was the message from the Van Der Beeks’ 9-year-old daughter, Emila. The little girl began the video, which Kimberly shared to Instagram, by acknowledging her father’s death and proceeding to say that she wanted to provide viewers with “tips” on how to handle the loss of a loved one. Emilia went on to say that the “number one” thing that helps her is to “talk” to her father, even if he “can’t hear” her. She also emphasized the importance of letting out emotions. Take a look at the tear-evoking clip:

I’m just downright impressed by the emotional maturity on display by Emilia Van Der Beek here. While she’s still handling the fact that her father is no longer with her, she’s already using her own experiences to help others, which is beyond admirable. On top of that, some other stars have since shared lovely reactions to the post like Sarah Michelle Gellar and Busy Philipps. Take a look:

• Busy Philipps: ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️happy birthday James🤎🤎🤎🤎🤎
• Sarah Michelle Gellar: Happy bday James!!!
• Emma Slater: There are literally no words to express how highly I think of Emilia. There are no words, I think she’s the greatest role model ever. I was blown away by her when I saw her recently and I’m blown away now. I can’t wait to see what she does in her life, I’ll be there every step of the way!
• Rumer Willis: This is so profound and beautiful and such a testament to the incredible way you have raised your beautiful family. Happy Birthday James. We love you.
• Jamie Lynn Sigler: Thank you for sharing Emilia. You are your dad’s love and legacy with your beautiful family. We love you ❤️

Based on the response to Van Der Beek’s death, he was incredibly loved within the Hollywood community. Dawson’s alum Meredith Monroe shared a particularly emotional tribute to Van Der Beek, while good friend Alfonso Ribeiro also opened up about his last time seeing the Pose alum. At the same time, celebrities like Zoe Saldaña and Steven Spielberg contributed to the GoFundMe established for Van Der Beek’s family, as he was dealing with various medical bills ahead of his passing.

James Van Der Beek’s death is still a hard pill to swallow in many respects. However, it’s nothing short of heartwarming that his family is honoring his memory in such wonderful ways and that others are joining them.

Earlier this year, the world sadly lost veteran actor James Van Der Beek, who died at the age of 48 following a battle with colon cancer. Tributes subsequently poured in from fans as well as many of the late Dawson’s Creek star’s friends and co-stars. Van Der Beek leaves behind an excellent body of work, and he still has one more film that’s set to be released posthumously amid the 2026 movie schedule. Now, one of Van Der Beek’s young co-stars on that film is opening about what it was like working with him.

Mason Gooding worked with Van Der Beek on The Gates, an upcoming thriller film written and directed by John Burr. The film centers on three young black men who, while driving through a gated community, witness a murder and end up being pursued by residents who believe they committed it. During an interview with Deadline, Gooding opened up about the experience of making the film. The Scream 7 star eventually referenced his late co-star and how invaluable it was to work with him:

The son of Oscar-winning actor Cuba Gooding Jr., Mason is still relatively new to the world of Hollywood, so I can definitely understand why he’d want to follow James Van Der Beek’s lead in a sense. With that, Mason – who previously honored Van Der Beek alongside Gates co-star Keith Powers – went on to explain exactly how he took his older co-star’s habits and approach to heart:

Gooding also had some other sweet sentiments to share about Van Der Beek, as he called their time together on set both “impactful and meaningful.” Adding to that, Gooding said that, at present, he could “engage and share with [his] understanding of James in his personhood, outside of his work”. What Gooding was referencing is that he could appreciate Van Der Beek beyond his position as an actor and appreciate him for the human being that he was. That seems to be a common thread amongst the tributes to the Varsity Blues star.

Many of Van Der Beek’s colleagues spoke highly of him after his death, with plenty of them lauding not only his skills as an actor but his character as well. At the same time, stars like Zoe Saldaña and Steven Spielberg also donated generous amounts of money to the GoFundMe set up on behalf of Van Der Beek’s family.

The Gates, which opens in theaters on March 13, also isn’t the only posthumous project for James Van Der Beek, as he’s also set to appear in the Legally Blonde prequel TV series. In some ways, it’s still tough to fathom that Van Der Beek is no longer with us. His legacy, however, could surely endure, especially if Mason Gooding and others continue to reflect on his work and their personal experiences with him.

2026 has had a number of tragic celebrity deaths already, including Eric Dane's passing and the death of James Van Der Beek. These both quickly went viral as did GoFundMe campaigns that'll benefit their families following tons of medical costs. While there has been some backlash from folks who don't understand why Hollywood "elites" would need this aid, Alyssa Milano recently broke down exactly why they're necessary.

Both Van Der Beek and Dane's GoFundMe campaign have raised a ton of money, which will no doubt be a relief to their families. Some folks thought that since these late actors have iconic tenures in shows like Dawson's Creek and Grey's Anatomy (both of which are streaming with a Hulu subscription), they didn't really need the money. But Alyssa Milano took to Substack to address this discourse, with the Charmed star writing:

She's already spitting some serious facts. While years ago actors were able to make a living on residuals, that's simply not the case anymore. Now these checks are super small, especially with streaming becoming more popular than the purchase of physical media. Hollywood's financial setup is in a very different place, and when you add in the medical expenses for both Eric Dane and James Van Der Beek, it stands to reason that the late actors' families might need the support.

Milano's Substack post helps to peel back the curtain on the reality of being a TV star at this point in time. She went on to share how the industry has morphed in recent years, claiming:

Milano also cites so many actors joining places like Cameo to help make more of an income, since residuals are no longer as profitable. Many also sell their gently used clothes to help make more money. She continued to defend the need for those famous GoFundMes, writing:

This certainly helps to provide some context about why both Dane and Van Der Beek's family might need assistance during this difficult time. Alyssa Milano has been a TV star a long time and she knows firsthand how the financial institution has morphed over the years. And this might help to quell the chatter of naysayers who didn't understand why the late actors' families needed GoFundMes.

Our thoughts continue to be with both Eric Dane and James Van Der Beek's loved ones during this difficult time. At the time of writing this story, both of their GoFundMe campaigns are still running.

Dawson’s Creek and Varsity Blues star James Van Der Beek sadly lost his battle with Stage 3 colorectal cancer a couple of weeks ago, at only 48 years old. The days since have seen a number of his family members, co-stars, and friends come forward to pay tribute to him, and open up about the “devastation and pain” of his passing. However, one Creek cast member has just now found the right words to say goodbye to their friend.

What One Dawson’s Creek Cast Member Just Said About The Death Of James Van Der Beek

A number of stars who worked with James Van Der Beek have come forward since his death on February 11 to talk about what he and his death has meant to them. The 2026 TV schedule will see the premiere of Elle, the Legally Blonde prequel in which Van Der Beek stars, and executive producer Reese Witherspoon opened up about working with the actor, saying he was “extraordinary, talented” and “showed great kindness and grace in every action.” Meanwhile, Dancing with the Stars co-host Alfonso Ribeiro spoke about being “broken” after his friend’s death.

Several celebrities have also contributed to the GoFundMe set up to help his family pay off medical bills and move forward financially, but there is one Dawson’s Creek co-star of his who’s only recently been able to find the words to pay tribute to the star, and that’s Meredith Monroe, who portrayed Andi McPhee. She’s now taken to Instagram to express her feelings and after noting that Van Der Beek and his family have been “constantly in my thoughts, my prayers & on my heart” she said, in part:

The 2026 movies schedule will see Van Der Beek star in The Gates, which is his last film, and the cast of that thriller also had kind words for him after his passing. As Monroe also noted in her post, she waited to open up because, “I still don’t know what to say?? Nothing seems right??” which anyone who’s lost a friend or family member can likely understand. She continued:

It’s clear that Monroe took her time so that she could find the right way to get her thoughts out about his death and the time she was able to spend with him. You can see her full post, below:

Many people have a hard time figuring out what to say when someone passes, as it’s an obviously hard situation to deal with. While Monroe was clearly still unsure about what she did share, she got her loving points across just fine.

The world sadly lost another bright star a few days ago. Over a week after Dawson’s Creek star James Van Der Beek passed away from colorectal cancer, Grey’s Anatomy and Euphoria actor Eric Dane died after his battle with ALS. Many have since been paying tribute to Dane, sharing their sweet memories of either watching or working with him. At the same time, Dane's family is also seeking assistances. Just like how Van Der Beek’s family set up a GoFundMe account after his death, Dane’s family is now in the same position.

At the end of this past week, a GoFundMe benefitting the family of Eric Dane was set up. The goal is to raise $250k, with the aim being to support Dane's two teenage daughters, Billie and Georgia. Here is the fund’s description:

As of this writing, 58% of the funding goal has been met, with $145,786 in donations having been sent in thus far. Eric Dane revealed his ALS diagnosis in April 2025 and, following that, he had his family's support. Dane was candid about his the toll that the disease had taken on him and his loved ones. The Bad Boys: Ride or Die alum also previously said his ALS diagnosis made him “angry” due to it taking him away from his young daughters. Now, with these fundraising efforts, Dane’s daughters seems to be receiving a plethora of financial support.

That aforementioned GoFundMe account came days after James Van Der Beek's family started their own. As explained, the cost of the late Dawson Creek star's cancer treatments weighed heavily on the family's finances. Van Der Beek's relatives set up the account in hopes that living expenses, bills and their six kids’ education would be supported.

Since then, the Van Der Beek family’s fund has surpassed its goal of $1.5 million with over $2.7 million in donations. Celebrities like Zoë Saldaña and Steven Spielberg were among the donators helping to provide Van Der Beek’s family with a level financial security. It’s truly amazing how giving people can be in times of loss, and it that's something that'll never cease to warm my heart.

The fact that neither Eric Dane nor James Van Der Beek are still with us is quite surreal. Both actors not only delivered performances that remain beloved by fans and stars alike but also exuded strong character. That seems to be major reason why so many are praising them and offering financial assistance to their loved ones now. As fans continue to mourn Dane and Van Der Beek, they can also revisit their work on Grey’s Anatomy and Dawson's Creek, respectively, with a Hulu subscription.

In the week since James Van Der Beek’s tragic death, the tributes and love from celebrities and fans have been pouring in. However, now, as the release of his final film, The Gates, approaches on the 2026 movie schedule, his co-stars are paying tribute to him in loving ways.

This year, we’ll get to see the the Dawson’s Creek actor's last two projects. One of them is the Legally Blonde prequel series Elle, which will be his final role. The other is the upcoming horror movie, The Gates, which will be his last film. Today, the trailer for that thrilling film came out, and most of the cast posted about it. Take a look:

In this movie, three friends played by Mason Gooding, Algee Smith and Keith Powers enter a gated community while trying to get around traffic, and then end up witnessing a murder. James Van Der Beek plays a pastor named Jacob, who seems a lot like a cult leader, and the three men are trying to both escape him and prove that he's the killer.

While Van Der Beek plays the bad guy in the movie, it's clear he was beloved on set. That was proven when Keith Powers posted the trailer on his Instagram, plugged the release date, and then closed out his caption with:

In the days since the actor passed away, a lot of love has poured in as celebrities paid tribute and donated to his GoFundMe. Others who were close to him, like Alfonso Ribeiro also penned emotional messages about their final moments with Van Der Beek.

His The Gates co-star, Mason Gooding, also posted about the actor right after his passing. Taking to Instagram to share some behind-the-scenes photos from the set of this new movie, the Heart Eyes star used his caption to relay a life lesson he learned from working with James Van Der Beek:

Gooding led the post with an image of him and Van Der Beek high-fiving, and he followed that up with a bunch of photos that appear to have been taken on the set of The Gates.

All around, it’s been lovely to see the late performer’s castmates show love and support for him during this tragic time. It’s also made me very excited to see this movie.

While it’s sad to think about how this will be the final film we get to see James Van Der Beek in, I also feel lucky that we have a few projects from him to look forward to. Between The Gates and Elle, his last two projects seem like great ones. And we won’t have to wait long for them either. That’s because his last show, Elle, will hit Prime Video on July 1, and his final movie, The Gates, will premiere in select theaters on March 13.

It’s hard to believe James Van Der Beek has passed. The loving father and nineties Dawson’s Creek icon was only 48, and suffering from colorectal cancer at the time of his death. His pal Alfonso Ribeiro said he’d beat it once, and it came back. It’s all been very tragic, and marred even more by stories of the actor trying to sell memorabilia before his death to set his family up.

Because Van Der Beek was not a regularly working actor in Hollywood, there’s been some question about his health insurance coverage around the time of his death. His family for a long time didn’t own the Texas compound lived on, and upon his passing a GoFundMe account was set up for James’ wife, Kimberly, and their six young children. The GoFund Me specifically states the family are “out of funds” amidst the actor’s cancer battle, and at the time of this writing, more than $2.6 million dollars have been raised to keep them on their feet. Some major names, like Steven Spielberg and Zoe Saldaña, have even chipped in.

In recent days, however, there have been some grumblings from fans on forums like Reddit denouncing all of this money that has been donated for the Van Der Beek family, particularly after reports broke indicating the actor had been able to purchase the Texas Compound they’d been renting prior to his death. Realtor.com confirmed the actor had purchased the $4.76 million dollar home one month prior to his death, on January 9th.

What Fans Said After GoFundMe And House Purchase Went Viral

Some fans who seem unhappy with the family’s financial planning in the wake of his illness have been very vocal about not donating to the GoFundMe. Nor do they seem happy with how, due to sympathies over James Van Der Beek’s death, the family is essentially being handed a wad of cash. That hasn’t sat well with some folks on several different Reddit threads (also this one), as well as other places on the Internet.

• "These is why these GoFundMe efforts are annoying. It's usually gullible people giving celebrities with bad financial planning their hard-earned money. These people want to live in lavish homes and luxuries beyond their limits. The wife needs to downsize. The hype around his death will fade, and she'll need a real, steady income."
• "Actually they also have a $2.5 million home in Beverly Hills they’re collecting rent on. Healthcare in the US is bad, but come on people, don’t get grifted."
• "They could afford $4.8 a month ago but can't afford anything now... And asking the public for money. That's some [bs]."
• "I don’t want to be rude, but couldn’t they sell the land and ranch and downsize if they needed money? I’m not saying their donations should be taken away, or they are not possibly struggling, but there are so many less fortunate people on GoFundMe who don’t even get a dime nor do they have a 5 million dollar property they can use as collateral."
• "We saw it happen with the Palisades fires too — people donating hundreds of thousands to celebrities who lost their homes in the fires but the thousands of regular civilians who lost EVERYTHING were forgotten about by so many and are still completely displaced."

Not everyone feels this way, as more than 49.8 thousand donations have come in for the Van Der Beek family since the GoFundMe was activated, and others in the industry, like Broadway star Donna Vivino, have defended the family's choices. Reese Witherspoon and other A-listers have paid tribute, as the Legally Blonde prequel will mark Van Der Beek's final role.

Why James Van Der Beek’s Rep Spoke Out

As the discourse continues online, People caught up to James Van Der Beek’s rep to find out what had happened with the rented ranch property in Spicewood, Texas, and whether reports about Van Der Beek having recently purchased the property were true. His rep spoke out on record, noting it had been purchased by the family.

Meanwhile, over on the GoFundMe, the “friends” of the family who set up the account have asked for privacy as the family mourns, though they have thanked those who donated "for their kindness."

Van Der Beek and his family left Hollywood and moved to Texas back in 2020, and spoke about the "key" being to appreciate both places for what they are. Prior to his death, the actor and his wife also still reportedly owned a separate California home that at one point had been listed as a rental for $12,000 a month.

After battling colorectal cancer for three years, actor James Van Der Beek passed away at the age of 48. He was best known for his starring role in the cast of Dawson’s Creek, becoming one of the most well-known faces of late-90s TV. With many of the actor’s loved ones paying tribute, Van Der Beek’s brother opens up about feeling “devastation and pain” in the aftermath of the late star’s death.

In the days following the death of James Van Der Beek, celebrity tributes were pouring in. Alfonso Ribeiro said the actor will “live forever in my heart,” and Reese Witherspoon (who was executive producing Van Der Beek’s final project, Elle) also sent kind words out about “what an extraordinary, talented man” he was. Among the most heartbreaking posts was from his brother, Jared, who posted on Instagram about the “devastation and pain” he’s been feeling in the days after his sibling's death:

I can only imagine how distressing it must be to lose a sibling. To go from someone always being in your life to no longer being there can be an aching void that is hard to heal from. Seeing the family photos that Jared Van Der Beek posted of being all smiles with his brother is enough to make you tear up and want to hug your brother and/or sister a little longer.

When someone you love passes away, it can feel like the rest of your life may never be the same again. Jared Van Der Beek continued to talk about how the Pose actor may not be there physically, but he’ll always feel his “presence” in other ways:

Even in death, no sibling bond can ever be broken. I’d like to believe that somewhere out there, the Varsity Blues actor has heard his brother’s words and will continue watching over him. Death may separate us from those we cherish, but it will never take away the love we have for them. Take a look at Jared Van Der Beek's heartbreaking post below:

Jared Van Der Beek continued to express that his healing comes from “the outpouring of love, prayers, and support” from his fans and those who loved him. After conveying that his late brother “touched so many lives,” it makes it all the more moving that the number of celebs who donated to the talented actor’s GoFundMe account to pay his medical bills is so high. On a goal of $1.5 million, donations are already racking up more than $2 million. It proves what a lasting effect the actor had on the world.

My heart goes out to James Van Der Beek’s family and friends, who are going through a painful time in the aftermath of his death. Through his projects and the lasting impression he had on others, his legacy will continue to live on through the people he touched.

Feel free to revisit the WB show that made the late actor a household name by streaming Dawson's Creek with a Netflix subscription or Hulu subscription.

The death of James Van Der Beek was clearly a shock to both those who knew him and the millions of fans he made throughout his career. While his ongoing battle with cancer was known, nobody was expecting the news that he had passed away. Fans all over the world are expressing their love for the Dawson’s Creek star, and they’re also opening up their wallets to help his family in the aftermath.

Why James Van Der Beek’s Family Set Up a GoFundMe

A GoFundMe has been set up in James Van Der Beek's name to help his family financially recover from his illness. According to the donation page, the family depleted their resources to pay for the treatment that Van Der Beek was undergoing.

It’s also unlikely that Van Der Beek’s family was going to be seeing much additional income from his work in the coming years. Back in 2012, the actor told Today that there were no residuals from his work on Dawson’s Creek, by far his most well-known and successful role, unlike the cast of other popular shows. At that time, he got a role on the sitcom Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23, playing a fictionalized version of himself. The show was critically well-regarded but only lasted two seasons.

With savings gone and little expected in the future, the GoFundMe is dedicated to getting the actor's family back on their feet. The good news is that it’s doing exactly that, and some big names are answering the call.

Zoë Saldaña, Steven Spielberg, And More Are Helping Out

The GoFundMe asked for $1.5 million for the family, and it’s already blown past that goal and, as of this writing, is sitting at $2.1 million. The vast majority of donations are, like most GoFundMe results, small-dollar donations, anything from $10 to $100.

However, a few of them are much bigger donations, and from some pretty significant names. Steven Spielberg and his wife Kate Capshaw donated $10,000 as did Jonathan Chu, who appears to be Wicked director Jon M. Chu. Lyn Lear, the widow of the late TV producer Norman Lear, has donated $5,000.

Names like Zachary Quinto and Derek Hough have each donated $1,000. Zoë Saldaña may end up donating more than anybody however; she’s set up for a $2,500 donation, but one that will be given monthly, meaning ongoing support for the family of James Van Der Beek.

It’s wonderful to see so many turn out to help, and so many big names giving money to a good cause. It looks like James Van Der Beek’s wife and children will be just fine, thanks to the generosity of many strangers and a few names we all know.

The death of James Van Der Beek on February 11 at the age of just 48 is a tragedy that resulted in outpourings of emotion from fans and fellow celebrities alike. The Dawson's Creek vet passed away after a battle with colorectal cancer, after first being diagnosed in 2023 and announcing the news publicly in 2024. Now, friend and Dancing with the Stars co-host Alfonso Ribeiro has opened up about the last time they saw each other, reflecting on the "roller coaster ride" of Van Der Beek's health.

While both men were big names in the '90s for Dawson's Creek and Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, fans saw James Van Der Beek join Dancing with the Stars in Season 28. Alfonso Ribeiro has been associated with ABC's dance show going back to his victory in Season 19 and expanding to now place him as co-host. While fans may have known about the DWTS link between them, Ribeiro's Instagram post following Van Der Beek's death shines a light on the friendship that blossomed outside of the public eye:

Tragically, there were evidently points during Van Der Beek's battle with cancer when it appeared that he had beat it. The actor had to miss the Dawson’s Creek reunion due his illness, with his daughter stepping up to join Joshua Jackson and Katie Holmes in his place. Ribeiro didn't share a timeline in his emotional tribute for when the future seemed bright, but went on:

The passing of his friend clearly doesn't mean the end of Alfonso Ribeiro's bond with the Van Der Beek family, not least because he is the godfather to Gwendolyn, the second youngest of James' six children. Ribeiro's post also resulted in a fresh outpouring of comments from fellow Dancing with the Stars vets. Take a look:

• Witney Carson: "He was so loved by you, and you could tell how much he loved you and your family. I’m sending so many prayers and healing your way. Love you so much ❤️‍🩹
• Julianne Hough: You are such a beautiful friend and soul mate, Al ❤️"
• Derek Hough: "🙏🏼💔"
• Carrie Ann Inaba: "Sending love and my sincere condolences to you and his family. The words 'gone too soon' keep repeating in my soul. 💔 His family and those he loved all now have a very special angel watching over them. 🕊️🙏 His light will continue to shine. 🙏🙏🙏"

Alfonso Ribeiro then went on to share a vulnerable moment with James Van Der Beek, shortly before their "last goodbye." The photo and the message go even further to demonstrate how close their friendship was, even if it wasn't constantly broadcast for the public to see. Take a look:

This wasn't even the end of Alfonso Ribeiro paying tribute to his friend and supporting James Van Der Beek's wife and six kids. Via Instagram Story, the DWTS fan favorite posted a link to the Go Fund Me started for Kimberly Van Der Beek and the rest of the family, which revealed that "Kimberly and the children are facing an uncertain future" due to the "costs of James’s medical care." Per the fundraising page, the family is "working hard to stay in their home and to ensure the children can continue their education and maintain some stability."

At the time of writing, the Go Fund Me has raised more than $1.8 million for the goal of $1.5 million out of nearly 36,000 donations. Among the top donors are Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw, with a total of $25,000, and Jon Chu, with $10,000. There are also many anonymous donors, and plenty of supporters who shared what they could.

Our thoughts here at CinemaBlend are with the friends, family, and loves ones of James Van Der Beek in this difficult time. Alfonso Ribeiro's tributes aren't the first and surely won't be the last in honor of a man who was part of so many millennials' lives simply as the leading man of Dawson's Creek, as well as his many projects in the years since.

James Van Der Beek tragically died on February 11; however, he still has a project that will be premiering on the 2026 TV schedule, and that show is the Legally Blonde prequel, Elle. So, in honor of her colleague, Reese Witherspoon paid a “devastated” tribute to the late star of the series she’s executive producing.

News of the Dawson’s Creek actor’s passing came after a long battle with Stage 3 colorectal cancer. The news of his death was announced on his Instagram, and immediately, a flood of loving comments and tributes came in. This included one from Reese Witherspoon, as she took to her Instagram story to repost the news and share a tribute. She wrote:

Along with these touching and tragic words, The Morning Show star also reposted the following video that Van Der Beek had uploaded to his Instagram in March of 2025:

The video, which you can watch above, shows the actor talking about the last year of his life and his battle with cancer. He was candid about how hard the year had been, and he explained that he realized he was “worthy of God’s love, simply because [he exists].” And with that in mind, he realized he was worthy of his own love. Over on Witherspoon’s IG story, she commented “Beautiful” over the video.

Adding to the love and support Witherspoon has shown on social media during this tragic moment, she also left the following comment on the Instagram post that announced Van Der Beek’s passing:

Now, all this comes in the months leading up to the release of Elle, the Legally Blonde prequel series. The show, which will be available with an Amazon Prime subscription starting July 1, is being executive-produced by the actress who originated the role of Elle Woods. It will follow her iconic character through high school before her days at Harvard Law, and the younger version of Elle will be played by Lexi Minetree.

Van Der Beek will play Dean Wilson in Elle. He’s a mayoral candidate for the city as well as the school district superintendent. So, it sounds like he has a major part to play in the prequel series.

While Elle will be Van Der Beek’s final on-screen role, it is not his only project that will come out after his death. This other project is a film called The Gates, and it will be released on the 2026 movie schedule on March 13. Directed by John Burr, the flick also stars Mason Gooding, Algee Smith and Keith Powers, with Van Der Beek set to play a character named Jacob.

So, as we mourn the loss of this wonderful actor, thankfully, he still has some exciting work to look forward to. Specifically, if you’d like to see the project he worked on with Reese Witherspoon, which will also serve as his final on-screen role, you can start streaming Elle on July 1.

James Van Der Beek – a pop culture icon among millennial audiences who will long be remembered for his titular role on the drama series Dawson's Creek and for the football movie Varsity Blues – has passed away at the age of 48.

The news comes from the actor's personal Instagram feed, the captioned image noting that Van Der Beek died earlier this morning following a battle with Stage 3 colorectal cancer. You can see the the post below:

Van Der Beek is survived by his wife Kimberly Brook and their six children.

Born in Connecticut, the actor got his start on the small screen with roles in episodes of shows including Nickelodeon's Clarissa Explains It All, the soap opera As The World Turns and the short-lived TGIF sitcom Aliens In The Family. In 1998, he got his big break starring in the WB teen drama Dawson's Creek as Dawson Leery – an aspiring filmmaker living in Massachusetts who sees his relationships with his best friends (Joshua Jackson, Katie Holmes) shift with the arrival of a new girl moving to town (Michelle Williams).

On the big screen, he made his feature debut as the bully Rick Sandford in the 1995 coming-of-age dramedy Angus, but he's best known for 1999's Varsity Blues – in which he plays a talented high school quarterback named Jonathon "Mox" Moxon who is in conflict about his future due to intense pressure from his father (Jon Voight).

His other notable movies include 2002's The Rules Of Attraction, Kevin Smith's Jay And Silent Bob Strike Back, and Jason Reitman's Labor Day.

While best known for his work in the '90s/'00s, he worked consistently in the last 20 years, with shows including Don't Trust The B---- in Apartment 23 (in which he played a satirical – and hilarious – version of himself), CSI: Cyber, and the animated Vampirina.

Last year, he was a contestant on the singing competition The Masked Singer in addition to appearing in two episodes of the streaming comedy series Overcompensating. He will posthumously be featured in a recurring role in the upcoming Prime Video series Elle (the Legally Blonde prequel).

In November 2024, Van Der Beek publicly announced that had been diagnosed with colorectal cancer, and he got an outpouring of support last year when he began auctioning memorabilia from his work up for auction to help pay for his medical bills.

We here at CinemaBlend extend our thoughts and sympathies to James Van Der Beek's family, friends, loved ones and fans during an incredibly sad time. Those who wish to watch and/or revisit some of the actor's most beloved and memorable work can find Dawson's Creek available to stream with a Hulu subscription, and Varsity Blues is available if you have a Paramount+ account.

Paul Walter Hauser has built a reputation not just for his impressive body of work, but for being one of Hollywood’s genuine good guys, and his latest move reinforces that in a meaningful way. The Emmy-winning actor is using his platform to help James Van Der Beek with cancer-related medical expenses. The Richard Jewell star has created an awesome grassroots fundraiser powered by generosity and fan support.

Hauser recently took to Instagram, announcing that he’s offering personalized Cameo videos with all proceeds going toward Van Der Beek as he continues treatment. The post was direct and heartfelt, acknowledging the hard financial realities Van Der Beek has faced since his diagnosis, including selling personal memorabilia and missing a planned Dawson’s Creek reunion, where his daughter stepped in on his behalf. The I, Tonya star’s post, shown below, is a call to action.

James Van Der Beek, 48, shared in late 2024 that he had been quietly battling stage 3 colorectal cancer since being diagnosed in August 2023. Despite being in excellent health, he sought medical attention after noticing subtle but persistent changes in his bowel habits that he initially brushed off. As of December 2025, the former teen drama star has said the process has been “a longer journey than I ever thought it would be,” but confirmed he’s feeling better while continuing treatment. Alongside focusing on his health and family, he’s also using his platform to advocate for early screening, stressing that people shouldn’t wait for symptoms before getting checked.

Walter Hauser’s effort has also resurfaced a lesser-known but genuinely charming connection between the two actors. While they’ve never shared the screen, the Cruella actor previously told The Rich Eisen Show about crossing paths with Van Der Beek at a celebrity flag football game. Sitting in the crowd, the Emmy winner jokingly started heckling the Varsity Blues actor, accidentally kicking off a back-and-forth bit that stuck. As Hauser explained:

In the social media post announcing the fundraiser, The Luckiest Man in America performer explained why Van Der Beek's situation struck such a personal chord. Learning that he had begun selling memorabilia to help cover treatment costs didn’t sit right with Hauser, especially as a fellow actor and father. Instead of looking away, Hauser used that discomfort as motivation, writing:

The Black Bird lead also laid out a clear, practical goal: raising $20,000 by March 1. Along with offering Cameo videos, he encouraged anyone who could to share the post and spread the word, turning a personal gesture into a broader show of support for Van Der Beek when it’s needed most.

As Van Der Beek continues focusing on his health and family, Hauser’s gesture stands out as a reminder of how far simple kindness can go. And for anyone looking to revisit his most iconic work, all the best Dawson’s Creek episodes are currently available to stream with a Hulu subscription.

It’s apparently been quite a week in the Van Der Beek household. When James Van Der Beek was unable to join Joshua Jackson, Katie Holmes and other cast members for a Dawson’s Creek reunion due to illness, his family showed up on his behalf, with his oldest daughter giving a small solo performance. Days later her proud dad penned an emotional tribute to Olivia on her birthday, and if this doesn’t call for his viral Dawson’s Creek crying meme, I don’t know what does.

Olivia is the oldest of six children James Van Der Beek shares with wife Kimberly, and the man known for playing Dawson Leery for six seasons on the WB took to Instagram to praise her performance at the Dawson’s Creek reunion and acknowledge her personal milestone. Olivia turned 15, which is quite meaningful to her dad — it’s how old Van Der Beek’s character was in the Dawson’s Creek pilot. James wrote:

James Van Der Beek had expressed regret over not being able to attend the reunion; he revealed in November 2024 he’s battling Stage 3 colorectal cancer and this week had come down with two stomach viruses.

However, Kimberly Van Der Beek was there with all six of their brood — Olivia, 15, Joshua, 13, Annabel, 11, Emilia, 9, Gwendolyn, 6, and Jeremiah, 2. As mentioned in James’ lengthy birthday post, Olivia took center stage for a solo, as the cast sang Paula Cole’s “I Don’t Want to Wait,” which served as the show’s iconic theme song.

James Van Der Beek’s post continued, relaying a story about how proud he was of her, even when she wasn’t perfect (don’t worry, Olivia — Dawson was far from perfect himself), encouraging her to keep being her authentic self. In his words:

I’m just gonna grab a tissue real quick, if you want to take a look at James Van Der Beek’s full post and Olivia’s amazing performance alongside sister Emilia:

Fans at the were undoubtedly disappointed James Van Der Beek couldn’t join the reunion — which was a charity event to raise money for F Cancer and to honor the actor — and participate in a live reading of the pilot’s script, but I think getting his reaction to his daughter in this moment really kind of makes up for it.

If you want to relive the best Dawson’s Creek episodes, all six seasons can be streamed with a Hulu subscription.

Much of the Dawson’s Creek cast have reunited over 20 years after the beloved teen drama came to an end, and for a very good cause. On Monday, Joshua Jackson, Katie Holmes, and many others came together for a special live reading of the 1998 pilot episode to raise money for F Cancer and star James Van Der Beek, who previously opened up about battling colorectal cancer. During the reunion, he hilariously referenced his viral crying meme, and it’s perfect.

Despite the reunion being held in his honor, the man of the hour could not attend due to a stomach illness. While Broadway legend Lin-Manuel Miranda stepped into the role of Dawson Leery, Van Der Beek still took the time to record a video for his fellow castmates and fans, which was shown before and after the reading. Via Variety, the actor reflected on Dawson’s Creek and its similarities to Phantom of the Opera, but there is one glaring difference that the two have, and I wouldn’t have it any other way:

Dawson may have been the worst character on Dawson’s Creek for a number of reasons, but Van Der Beek’s epic cry-face during Season 3 when Dawson lets Joey go so she can try things out with Pacey is perhaps the best moment on the series. Or at the very least, the most meme-able moment before memes were even a thing. It was bound to come up at some point during the reunion, and it only makes sense for Van Der Beek himself to mention it, even if he wasn’t actually there in person.

It is disappointing that Van Der Beek couldn’t be at the reunion in person, especially since it was set up to help him, as well as F Cancer. At the very least, him still being able to do a video and be in good spirits about it, aside from getting choked up, is better than nothing, and there’s also nothing he could have done about the illness.

Also in attendance were Michelle Williams, who is the mastermind behind the reunion, as well as Mary Beth Peil, John Wesley Shipp, Mary-Margaret Humes, Nina Repeta, Kerr Smith, Meredith Monroe, and Busy Philipps. Renée Elise Goldsberry served as the narrator for the evening, which still seemed like a fun time.

Meanwhile, fans were probably doing their own version of Dawson’s crying face when they found out James Van Der Beek would be missing the reunion. He’s reunited with the Dawson’s Creek cast before, and this just gives them an excuse to do another reunion, whether public or private, so Van Der Beek can be there when he’s feeling better. In the meantime, fans can always reminisce on the Millennial favorite with all six seasons streaming with a Hulu subscription.

In January 1998, the world was introduced to a close-knit group of teen friends in the fictional town of Capeside, Massachusetts. And at the center of the iconic Dawson's Creek cast was Dawson Leery himself (played by James Van Der Beek), an introspective 15-year-old and aspiring filmmaker with a serious love of Steven Spielberg movies and a complicated relationship with the girl next door, Joey Potter (a breakout Katie Holmes).

And whether you're a first-time watcher of the popular nineties show or viscerally remember watching that formative pilot when it first aired on The WB all those decades ago, you will quickly recognize that, despite the show literally being named after him, sometimes Dawson Leery wasn't all that. He could be insensitive, self-righteous, entitled, melodramatic and downright insufferable — over six seasons, here are 32 times that Dawson himself was the absolute worst on Dawson's Creek.

When Dawson Shamed Jen For Her Romantic Past

In the first season, Dawson dates — and deifies — the mysterious new girl in town Jen Lindley (played by future four-time Oscar nominee Michelle Williams, who would ironically go on to play Steven Spielberg's mother). However, when he finds out that his new girlfriend has been sexually active since age 12, Dawson's reaction is less than understanding and he harshly ridicules Jen for her past experiences.

When He Used Mary Beth To Try To Make Jen Jealous

Though Dawson regularly posits himself as a self-proclaimed "nice guy" throughout the six-season series, he does frequently behave quite callously to those he's dating. Case in point: taking innocent Mary Beth (Megahn Perry) out in the season one episode titled "Double Date," all as a ruse to get a reaction out of his on-again-off-again love interest, Jen Lindley.

When He Read Joey's Diary Without Her Permission

Dawson can proclaim all he wants that he and Joey are soulmates, but that still doesn't give him the right to read Joey's personal diary without her knowledge in the season 2 episode "Crossroads". Even worse is that he believes he's in the right to be angry that she derided his talent as an amateur filmmaker but remains unapologetic about the fact that he violated her privacy.

When He Guilted Joey For Her Summer Plans Abroad

Given her penchant for the arts, it makes sense that Joey would want to spend a summer in the famously beautiful and cinematic city of Paris. However, when she relays such plans to Dawson at the end of the first season, he selfishly guilts her about how hard the distance would be for him, instead of thinking of how great it would be for her. Ultimately, she forgoes her French plans to be near Dawson and stays in Capeside for the summer. (Thankfully, she would eventually see the Eiffel Tower in season 6.)

When He Filmed His and Jen's First Kiss Without Her Knowledge

Dawson famously wants to be a director like Spielberg when he grows up and frequently films little student movies and such throughout Dawson's Creek. However, one of his creepier screen projects was in the third episode of the first season, when he set up a camera to secretly record his first kiss with crush Jen in tribute to all of the famous movie smooches in film history. Only, life isn't a movie, Dawson!

When He Broke Up With Natasha Over Voicemail After Cheating On Her

In the sixth season of Dawson's Creek, Dawson has a fling with an actress named Natasha Kelly (Bianca Kajlich) during his summer working as an assistant director in Los Angeles. However, things get very complicated when he returns to Capeside and rekindles, ahem, physically with Joey. After the longtime friends finally sleep together, Dawson phones Natasha the morning after and brutally dumps her via answering machine.

When He Accused Jack of "Stealing" Joey From Him

In the season two episode "Unchartered Waters,” Dawson unfairly snipes at Jack McPhee (Kerr Smith) that he stole Joey from him. However, in reality, Joey actually broke up with Dawson well before she and Jack got together because she needed space from their relationship. Jack wisely reminds Dawson of that important fact, and that Joey is far too smart to be "stolen" by any boy.

When Dawson Entered That Boat Race To Spite Pacey

Saying that Dawson handled the fact that his beloved Joey was dating his best friend Pacey Witter (Joshua Jackson) very poorly is an understatement. In the third season, he even decides to enter a local sailing competition at the last minute under the guise of beating Pacey and winning Joey back. Of course, that misguided scheme is a big old fail, with Dawson nearly crashing his boat into Pacey's vessel and getting disqualified from the regatta.

When Het Got Too Drunk And Ruined His Surprise Birthday Party

In the sixteenth episode of season 2, fittingly entitled "Be Careful What You Wish For," Joey sweetly plans a surprise party for Dawson's big 16th birthday at the Leery residence. The only problem is that Dawson and Andie (Meredith Monroe) decide to get rowdy at a nightclub beforehand and get absolutely zonked — while underage! — on rum and cokes. When he finally arrives at the surprise party, he's acting plenty foolish, falling face-first into his birthday cake and spending the rest of the night vomiting in the bathroom alongside Andie.

When He Publicly Aired His Parents' Dirty Laundry At His Birthday Party

During a drunken tirade at his 16th birthday in season 2, Dawson takes the time usually reserved for making a wish and blowing out his candles to instead ruthlessly rant about his parents, telling a party full of people about how his mom Gail (Mary-Margaret Humes) slept with her co-anchor, how his dad Mitch (John Wesley Shipp) doesn't have a job, and so on. It goes without saying that it brings the shindig to quite a halt.

When He Guilted Joey Into Turning Her Father Over to the Cops

In season 2, Dawson sees that Joey's father Mike Potter (Gareth Williams) — who had previously been in prison for drug trafficking — has sadly resumed his drug-dealing activities. And instead of quietly supporting Joey and letting her handle that strained family situation on her own, Dawson forces Joey to wear a wire and get a confession implicating her dad. The plan works but is distressing not only for Joey, who tells Dawson she will never forgive him for forcing her decision, but also for actor James Van Der Beek, who cites the episode as the moment when Dawson's Creek went off the rails.

When Dawson Practiced Kissing On A Mannequin In Front Of His Dad

Okay, sure, there's coming-of-age sweetness throughout the iconic teen drama series Dawson's Creek, especially where first romances and such are concerned. But an early scene where Dawson is given smooching pointers by his dad, all while practicing said moves on a mannequin doll fashioned to look like his female best friend Joey is definitely less cute and more creepy.

When He Demeaned Pacey In Front of Everyone At His Birthday Party

The love triangle between Dawson, Joey and Pacey meant that there was a lot of animosity between the two boys throughout the series, but even before Joey and Pacey got together, Dawson demeaned his supposed best friend on the regular. An especially egregious example is Dawson's boorishly drunken rant at his 16th birthday party in season 2, which saw the birthday boy suggest that Pacey's only purpose is to make Dawson feel better about himself in comparison. Even worse, we never actually saw him apologize for that slight!

When He Prodded Joey About Her Physical Relationship With Jack

In the early seasons of Dawson's Creek, Dawson had a bit of an obsession with the status of Joey's virginity. One such instance of the teen butting his nose into his friend's business is in a season 2 episode where he publicly questioned Joey about whether she had slept with Jack and lied about sleeping with Jen just to make Joey jealous. Jen rightly dubbed the whole thing a "pathetic little display."

When He Insulted A Film Critic Who Was Reviewing His Movie

Dawson's dreams of being one of the film industry's great directors was a common thread through the show's six seasons. However, he didn't always make things easy for himself — in the season 5 episode "Cigarette Burns," Dawson insults Amy Lloyd (Meredith Salenger), a film critic tasked with reviewing a movie he made, even telling the writer that she has bad taste in films. We don't think Spielberg behaves that way, Leery!

When He Made Fun Of Jack's Coming Out Journey

With Jack McPhee, Kerr Smith played one of TV's great queer characters — he even was the first man to have an on-screen gay kiss on American television. As part of that onscreen LGBTQ+ representation, Smith's character navigated the ups and downs of his coming out journey in the back-half of season 2, a self-discovery that Dawson drunkenly mocked at his 16th birthday. "Tonight, starring in his very own version of In & Out," Dawson taunted him. "He's in, he's out, he's in, he's out! Nice hair by the way." He might've been joking but it was clearly not funny.

When He Dated Pacey's Older Sister After Giving Him a Hard Time About Joey

For giving Pacey such a hard time about dating his best friend Joey, Dawson didn't seem to see any problem with romancing Pacey's own sister Gretchen (played by NCIS star Sasha Alexander) for much of his senior year. Not to mention there's a not insignificant age difference between the 17-year-old Dawson and the 21-year-old Gretchen.

When Dawson Ruined Joey's Time At The Anti-Prom

At the end of season 3, the Capeside gang throws an "Anti-Prom" in support of the newly out Jack, but Dawson instead takes it as an opportunity to parade Joey around as his date to make Pacey jealous. After seeing Joey and Pacey slow dance — in a sweet and romantic scene that will make you believe in love again — Dawson melodramatically storms out of the event and unfairly yells at Joey that the only reason he suggested "this whole stupid alternative prom" wasn't about Jack at all but rather her. Manipulative!

When He Was Upset That Joey Moved On With Pacey, Even Though He Rejected Her First

The end of season 3 saw the lifelong friendships of Dawson Leer, Joey Potter and Pacey Witter implode when Joey and Pacey started developing romantic feelings for each other. That development really shouldn't have been a problem for Dawson at all, since he previously turned down Joey's offer to rekindle their own romance because he didn't want to ruin their friendship, plus he had specifically asked Pacey to look after the young Miss Potter in the first place.

When He Overreacted About His Student Film And Swore Off Movies Forever

Teenage hormones are a famously fussy phenomenon, but even so, Dawson Leery always had quite the penchant for melodrama. One textbook example is in season 3 after he enters his Blair Witch rip-off student film into a film festival and gets rightly roasted by the other filmmakers in contention. After dismissing the constructive criticism of those “art house snobs," he goes home, clears his walls of all of his beloved movie posters and then drops out of film class. Overreaction much?

When He Didn't Tell Joey He Had a Girlfriend Before They Slept Together

It was six long seasons before Dawson and Joey consummated their on-and-off again relationship, but the slow-burn moment was pretty much ruined when Joey catches a girl calling Dawson on his cell phone the morning after. Turns out, the girl is an actress he had been seeing up until that very morning. "I would rather you weren't involved with someone when we finally sleep together...you should have told me, before!" Joey roars in the season 6 episode "The Song Remains The Same," only for Dawson to respond that she's blowing things out of proportion.

When He Clashed With The Director and Got Fired on His First Day Of Work

Sure, British director Todd Carr (Hal Ozsan) was no picnic to work for, what with his hot temper and no filter, but given that Dawson was only a mere intern working at a Hollywood film studio for the very first time, the young Leery lad probably shouldn't have told his boss that he's basically a hack who only makes bad movies. Unsurprisingly, Dawson was promptly fired and even dropped out of film school because of the embarrassing incident.

When He Reacted Badly To His Mom's Pregnancy

The introduction of a new baby into a family can conjure up feelings of jealousy in a soon-to-be sibling, but usually not when that sibling is a fully-grown 18-year-old. In the season 4 episode "The Family Way," Dawson doesn't take well to the news that his parents are expecting a baby, sulking around the house and offering a very belated — and begrudged congratulations — to Gail and Mitch. Things get worse when Gail reveals that she's considering an abortion, given her age and the family's financial troubles, which causes Dawson to react horribly instead of supporting his mother in her personal decision.

When He Broke Pacey's Nose By Throwing A Basketball At His Face

We'll play devil's advocate here: Pacey was definitely out of line telling Jen that Dawson's childhood nickname was Oompa Loompa and for trying to embarrass Dawson in front of an entire squad of cheerleaders in the season 1 episode "Detention." But that doesn't mean Dawson should have ever resorted to violence, especially not chucking a basketball directly at his best friend's face and breaking his nose. Unsurprisingly, that courtside fight lands both boys in detention.

When He Didn't Listen When Joey Said She Was Uncomfortable Sharing a Bed

For much of their childhood friendship, Joey would spend the night over at the Leery residence and share a bed with her good buddy Dawson. However, what with the changes that come with puberty and such, Miss Potter reveals in Dawson's Creek season 1 that she's no longer comfortable being bunkmates with her boy bestie. "Things change, Dawson. Evolve!" she tells him. However, Dawson downplays her concerns and forces her to spend the night even though she's clearly not feeling totally okay with it. Plus, he hogs the bed!

When He Immediately Went Against His Film Teacher's Rules

In season 1, aspiring director Dawson wanted to take a film class at the fictional Capeside High, but the underclassman was deemed too young. However, after some earnest begging from the student, the school's film teacher Mr. Gold (Mitchell Laurance) decides to let him audit the class, so long as he promises not to participate since he's not officially enrolled. Cut to Dawson's very first film class and what does he do? He immediately throws passive observation out the window and smugly inserts comments and questions into the film class.

When He Cringingly Sang The Blues About His Romantic Troubles

As part of Dawson's alcohol-fueled 16th birthday celebrations, he and Andie decide to throw themselves into a night of unabashed and underage recklessness, which includes taking the stage at a jazz club to awkwardly sing "the blues." Such choice lyrics include: "My name is Dawson Leery, I'm feeling kinda weary / Today is my birthday, and you all look a little blurry / The girl that I cared for left me and ran away / straight into the arms of a guy who turned out to be gay." Better stick to filmmaking, Dawson!

When He Tempted His Friends With A Stolen Copy Of The PSAT Test

In the season 3 episode "None of the Above," Dawson is far from the only student tempted to cheat when the Capeside gang gets their hands on an advance copy of the PSAT test, even veritable goody-two-shoes like Joey and Andie consider it. However, he was the one who brought the stolen test to his friends in the first place — in school, no less! — after getting the test from his bad-girl love interest Eve Whitman (Brittany Daniel).

When He Wrecked His Dad's Boat While Hooking Up With Eve

Dawson's season 3 romance with Eve revealed a wild, and irresponsible, side of the usually straightlaced character. While smooching with the mysterious blonde during a cruise on his dad Mitch's boat, Dawson gets so distracted that the boat crashes into a dock, warranting $3,000 worth of repairs. As if that isn't bad enough, he decides to have a rowdy house party with strippers and charge $20 a pop for attendees to drum up the cash, all while his parents are out of town. Of course, Mitch comes home early and is not happy about the situation.

When He Spent His Professional Career Stuck In His High School Days

Sure, by the series finale of Dawson's Creek, our titular lead finally got his happy ending as a director working in Hollywood, one with apparently enough notoriety to snag a meeting with the one and only Steven Spielberg. However, it's revealed that Dawson isn't working on acclaimed feature films like his filmmaking hero — instead, he's working on a TV show, The Creek, about his relationship with Joey and their experiences in Capeside. "Write what you know" is one thing, but "obsess over your past" is a different thing altogether.

When He Didn't Take Joey's Artistic Talents Seriously

"Dawson, why is it that your obsession with movies is your life passion, but my interest in art is just a hobby?" Joey rightly questions Dawson early on in season 2. Indeed, Dawson had regularly diminished Joey's sketches and artistic pursuits as a mere pastime all the while expecting his best friend-slash-love interest to take his short films and student projects seriously. It's no surprise, then, that when Pacey iconically bought Joey a wall as a canvas to pursue her art, she — and we — swooned!

When Dawson Made This Crazy Face As He Cried

It's the face that launched a thousand hilarious memes: when Dawson finally realized that Joey and Pacey were endgame in season 3, he sadly had to come to terms with his broken heart over losing Joey. And he did so, but not before unleashing one of the most memorable crying faces in TV history. The cry-face was so iconically awful that Van Der Beek's own Dawson's Creek co-star Joshua Jackson jokingly offered up his own small-screen sob in tribute.

Some of the most famous memes on the internet come from some of the oddest places. Often you may recognize the star, or the movie or TV show, the memes come from, but the original context is completely lost on you. With this list we are going to help explain what the original context was for these famous memes.

John Travolta In Pulp Fiction

This is one of the more obvious ones. The meme is John Travolta looking around confused. It comes, of course, from Pulp Fiction, when he walks into the Wallace's house to pick up Mia Wallace (Uma Thurman) for their date. When he first walks in, Mia is nowhere to be seen, but she can be heard over what seems like an intercom system or sound system. He is confused about where Mia is.

Charlie Day In It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia

The "Pepe Silvia Conspriracy is what gives us the great meme of Charlie Day on It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia standing wide-eyed in front of a bulletin board with a red string drawn across "evidence" that he's co-worker Pepe Silvia isn't real. it comes from the Season 4 episode, "Sweet Dee Has a Heart Attack."

Nicolas Cage In Vampire's Kiss

There is no better actor from which to get great memes than Nicolas Cage, especially in those scenes where Cage goes completely bananas. In Vampire's Kiss, we get such a scene when Cage is just starting to lose it after he hooks up with a vampire who bites his neck.

Gene Wilder In Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory

The "tell me more" meme, known officially as "Condescending Wonka" features Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka comes from a scene when Wonka isn't being condescending at all. He's just excited to show the kids the Ever-Lasting Gobstopper.

Patrick Stewart In Star Trek: The Next Generation

There is no question that the Patrick Stewart/Jean-Luc Picard facepalm from Star Trek: The Next Generation is one of the most widely used memes in the history of the entire internet. Curious, it comes from a very brief moment on the show. It's seriously like half a second when he does it. it comes from the Season 3 episode titled "Deja Q" and unsurprisingly, he's stunned by Q.

Leonardo DiCaprio In The Great Gatsby

Leonardo DiCaprio is one of the actors people most love to use in a meme and one of his most famous is from the first party scene in The Great Gatsby as he's finally introducing himself as the great Gatsby. Of course, it's matched with great fanfare in the movie, which is sadly missing from the meme (obviously).

Steve Carell In The Office

Steve Carell has had some classic memes made from his expressions on The Office but none more used than the classic shot of him yelling "NO!" It will be no surprise to fans of that Carell's character Micheal is reacting to the return of his nemesis in the office, Toby Flenderson (Paul Lieberstein).

Sean Bean In The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

At the Council of Elrond in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Sean Bean's character Boromir declares that "One does not simply walk into Mordor." So a meme was born as the look on Bean's face is perfect for describing anything that isn't easy.

Homer In The Simpsons

The scene of Homer Simpson disappearing into the bushes, used for all kinds of memes to show embarrassment, is, incredibly, over 30 years now. The scene comes from a Season 5 episode called "Homer Loves Flanders." The scene is specifically parodying the Terminator in Terminator 2 and his shape-shifting as Homer chases after Flanders.

Spider-Man In Spider-Man

The famous Spider-Man pointing at Spider-Man meme comes from way back in the 1960s and the Spider-Man cartoon that aired for one season in 1967. In the episode, the villain disguises himself as Spider-Man and they confront each other outside the police station.

Robert Redford In Jeremiah Johnson

Jeremiah Johnson is not one of Robert Redford's most remembered movies. In fact, there is a decent chance it would be forgotten completely if not for the famous meme of Redford with his bushy beard looking back over his shoulder seemingly approving something, as the meme makes it out to be. In the movie, he's nodding approval after having trapped a beaver.

Joaquin Phoenix In The Joker

One of the most recent memes to really take off is the scene from The Joker of Joaquin Phoenix as the titular character dances on some stairs as he embraces the villain he has become. The stairs themselves have become a popular tourist spot and famous filming location in The Bronx.

Ice Cube In Friday

It's a statement that has come to mean so much more than the fleeting scene it was originally in Friday. Felicia is the annoying neighbor who is always looking to get over on someone but isn't very good at it. After begging the main characters for a whole bunch of stuff, finally, Craig (Ice Cube) says curtly, "Bye Felicia" and a meme was born,

Willem Dafoe In Spider-Man 3

Willem Dafoe In Spider-Man 3 is really great, especially as Norman Osborn, the alter-ego of The Green Goblin. Famously he tells Peter that he is "something of a scientist himself" and that moment is one that has lived on as one of the most popular memes on the web, used to tell people that "someone is quite the something."

Keanu Reeves In Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure

Long before the internet was part of everyday life, people were celebrating Keanu Reeves for his famous "Whoa!" in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. In the years since, that celebration has only grown and now it's one of the most widely circulated memes in the world, usually used to signify the same thing it is in the movie, pure surprise. In the scene, it's when they discover all both Bills and Teds are thinking of the same number.

Laurence Fishburne In The Matrix

What if I told you that the line "What if I told you" doesn't actually appear in The Matrix? Would that blow your mind? The reason most people think it does is because of the famous meme of Laurence Fishburne as Morpheus. Morpheus is explaining what the matrix is in the scene, but he never says those words.

James Van Der Beek On Dawson's Creek

The famous "Dawson" crying meme comes from a moment on Dawsom's Creek so brief if you blink at the wrong time, you'll miss it. It comes from a scene in the Season 3 finale when Dawson (James Van Der Beek) and Joey (Katie Holmes) break up. the meme has had a far longer impact on popular culture than the show, it turns out.

Tim Robinson On I Think You Should Leave

Tim Robinson's saying "You sure about that" has quickly become one of the most used memes around, especially on YouTube. It comes from a Season 2 episode of one of the best Netflix original shows, I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson where Robinson is playing a stereotypical pitchman on an infomercial.

Jeff Goldblum In Jurassic Park

Ah yes, we've finally come to the "Jeff Goldblum shirtless in Jurassic Park" meme. The scene is after Goldblum's character Dr. Ian Malcolm is injured in the T-Rex attack and he is resting and trying to recover while criticizing what's happening around him.

Woody And Buzz In Toy Story 2

The famous meme of Woody And Buzz from Toy Story 2 has been used for every kind of meme imaginable when trying to explain something to someone. In the movie, it doesn't really have anything to do with that. The scene is when Woody has lost his hat right before leaving with Andy for summer camp and they are desperately looking for it as Buzz seems unconcerned about it all.

Wayne Knight In Jurassic Park

Jurassic Park really is a meme-able movie and one of the most famous ones is Wayne Knight of Seinfeld fame laughing and pointing away from another character. In the scene, he is mocking Dobson (the man in the shades and the hat) for thinking anyone in the beach bar cares what they are doing there. In Meme form, it's used to mock anyone, really.

Bruno Ganz In Downfall

Bruno Ganz in the amazing movie Downfall is a different kind of meme as people rewrite the subtitles of the epic scene in the German movie to fit whatever they are angry about, from sports to casting decisions in the MCU. In the movie, of course, Ganz plays the evil man with a tiny mustache as he is freaking out towards the end of World War II and it's clear he and the Germans have lost.

Ray Liotta In GoodFellas

This famous meme comes from a very famous scene in Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas. In the scene, Ray Liotta's character Henry Hill is reacting to a funny story told by Tommy (Joe Pesci). It's used for just about everything as a meme, but in the movie, Tommy is very angry at Henry for not explaining how Tommy's funny. Funny how? Funny like a clown? The meme is, that's for sure.

Leonardo DiCaprio In Django Unchained

The very famous meme of Leonardo DiCaprio laughing in Django Unchained is from a shot so brief it's amazing anyone picked up on it to even make it a meme. It's obviously from the dinner party and DiCaprio's character is laughing at his own joke, which makes the meme even better.

Jordan Peele In Key And Peele

Jordan Peele has become better known for his direction of amazing horror movies these days than as half of the brilliant comedy duo Key And Peele, but his most famous comes from the latter. In the sketch, his wife is asking him about his browser history, and the crazier and crazier the searches get the more he starts to sweat until it's pouring like a faucet out of his head.

Wagner Moura In Narcos

"Sad Pablo" has become very popular since Wagner Moura's amazing performance as Pablo Escobar in Narcos. The various memes on him looking sad or contemplative are taken from many moments on the show, but very rarely from when he is actually sad, Mostly they are fleeting moments of the drug kingpin thinking about his next move.

Christine Taylor In A Very Brady Sequel

"Sure Jan" is a pure classic. Obviously, it's Marsha Brady and she is indeed talking down to her sister Jan in the scene in A Very Brady Sequel, which is a pretty underrated comedy based on the original show from the 1960s. In the scene, Jan is making up a story about her imaginary boyfriend, George Glass and while everyone else in the family believes her, Marsha certainly does not.

Arnold Schwarzenegger And Carl Weathers In Predator

In the meme, all we get is two very muscular arms gripping hands in a very masculine handshake. One arm belongs to Arnold Schwarzenegger and the other to Carl Weathers. It comes from a scene in the first Predator movie. When the two characters, who are old friends, first see each other before the mission to seek and destroy the titular enemy.

It’s a Trap! In Return Of The Jedi

This is probably the most famous meme of them all, or at least the one that most people are going to know where it comes from. The origin story here of Admiral Akbar in Return Of The Jedi after the fleet has jumped in the battle above Endor. His famous line is, of course, "It's a trap!"

Bill Skarsgård In It

In what has to be the creepiest popular meme around, Pennywise, as played by Bill Skarsgård in It, is looking up out of a storm drain. It occurs after one of the kids chases his paper boat as it floats down the gutter and into the sewer.

Leonardo DiCaprio In Once Upon A Time In Hollywood

Proving that everyone loves a great Leonardo DiCaprio meme, one of the more popular ones lately is of the actor from Once Upon A Time In Hollywood as he points at the TV because he's about to be on. Not seen in the photo is Brad Pitt, who is also in the scene watching with DiCaprio.

Nicolas Cage In Wicker Man

"NOT THE BEES!" is one of Nicolas Cage's most unhinged lines from a totally unhinged movie, The Wicker Man. It's a movie that seemingly only exists for the memes. There are a lot of options in the movie, that's for sure.

I just want to start out this post with a little bit of context: I am a millennial who is sort of in the middle of the age bracket for that group. I know people around my age who did watch Dawson’s Creek, particularly the later seasons, in the early aughts. Most of these people had older siblings, but given I was the eldest in my family, I didn’t have a ton of interest during the show’s original run. Now, though, it’s time to go back and binge, baby. So I’m in the middle of watching the Creek with an Amazon Prime subscription, and while there’s a lot of star power in this series and some things I like, there are three big questions I have for original fans about some of the choices made on this show.

To also mention, I decided to write this before I finished binge-watching. I’m currently only partway through Season 3, so if there’s some big, crazy plot that comes up later, just think of me as being on a fledgling journey; I’m not dumb, I just don’t have the full picture of this series yet.

Did Everyone Originally Cringe-Watch Through The Tamara And Pacey + Jack Coming Out Plotlines?

I had no idea going in that signing on for this show would mean countless minutes of watching a young teenager hooking up with his 40-something teacher. (I think she says she's even younger than that during one ep?) Or that one LGBTQ+ character would come out while getting hazed by his teacher. Really I get Jack coming out on one of the most popular nineties shows was brave and I’ve read it was a compromise show creator Kevin Williamson –who is himself LGTBTQ+ – made to get better representation on network TV. Still, things have changed a lot since this TV moment and there’s quite a bit to learn from Jack’s coming out.

But this Tamara plotline and Pacey actually getting hazed about it when people found out?! I literally had to watch many of these scenes with my hands over my eyes and peek through the gaps. Were we OK with this plotline in the ‘90s? Was it cool? Was it as cringe as I find it in 2024?

Why Does This Show Kill So Many People Off? 

For a small town in Massachusetts, an awful lot of Dawson's Creek cast members seem to die. There’s Jenn’s grandfather, of course, but that one kind of made sense. But then Monica Keena wanted to leave the show, and her character died in a drunken drowning accident. Joey Potter’s mom is dead when the series starts. I’m not to the end of this series yet, but from what I understand, Dawson loses a parent at some point. I’m probably missing more, but you get the gist.

I know a lot of shows have loved killing off characters over the years. There was a big run of this when shows like Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad, Justified, Sons of Anarchy and Boardwalk Empire were killing off characters while making peak TV happen. But like, at least those shows were meant to be violent. This is a coming-of-age drama!

Most Importantly: Did Everyone Hate Dawson In The ‘90s? 

Look, I don’t think it’s even really meanspirited for me to say I dislike Dawson. Even when he’s more palatable in Season 1, he’s too precocious and self-aware to be anything but eye-roll inducing. Normally I use self-aware as a positive adjective, but it’s really, really not here. Years later, James Van Der Beek has made comments about Dawson's Creek going off the rails, as well as not really enjoying some aspects of playing his most famous TV character.

A quick perusal shows that I am not alone in my Dawson hate. In fact, a colleague of mine even rewatched the Dawson’s Creek pilot a couple of years ago and voiced a similar thought. But when the show was first airing, was this the case? Was Dawson a misunderstood teen who garnered sympathy? Or has it only been the passage of time that’s been unkind to our young, selfish, titular hero?

As a millennial who didn’t watch during the early run, these are the questions that have really stood out to me most as I’ve started embarking on my binge-watching journey. My sister has informed me there’s more to hate on later, notably after the main gang graduates from high school. I guess I can’t wait.

Spoilers ahead for the series finale of Walker on The CW, called "See You Sometime."

Jared Padalecki's long run of CW projects has come to an end with the series finale of Walker in the 2024 TV schedule, after it was confirmed back in May that the end of the fourth season would be the permanent end of the show. The finale had already been filmed by the time the cancellation was confirmed, and "See You Sometime" ended on a cliffhanger hook for Season 5 that involved a former icon of the network and a new storyline for Cordell and Co. Alas, that storyline will never happen now, but Padalecki and showrunner Anna Fricke weighed in on what the plan was for the new character... played by none other than Dawson's Creek cast alum James Van Der Beek!

Okay, technically James Van Der Beek was never a CW star, since his Dawson's Creek days were before The WB rebranded itself as The CW, but it more or less remained the same network and this was a show that all but launched the primetime teen soap genre, starring the likes of Katie Holmes, Michelle Williams, and Joshua Jackson alongside Van Der Beek. The show was huge over the course of its six seasons from 1998 - 2003. And while Dawson's Creek – on which Van Der Beek played the titular Dawson – ended before Padalecki joined forces with Jensen Ackles for Supernatural, they did have some mutual WB days when the future Walker star was on Gilmore Girls.

And it turns out that the connection between the actors is what brought James Van Der Beek to Walker. Speaking with TVLine, Padalecki shared that the former Dawson's Creek leading man is "a personal friend," and elaborated:

Van Der Beek's scene in the finale was seemed innocuous on the surface, as his character was revealed as the Walkers' new neighbor who left a gift on their doorstep. That might just have seemed nice and neighborly, but he was dressed in all white and dropping off soap, and it just felt... off. Plus, the way the episode concealed his face until almost the last moment made it clear that this was a lot more than just a nice guy next door played by the guy from Dawson's Creek. Padalecki went on:

Our imaginations can run wild in the wake of the finale, but just because Walker was cancelled doesn't mean fans will never know more details about the plan for James Van Der Beek's character. Showrunnner Anna Fricke, who started in the entertainment industry on Dawson's Creek, shared:

Viewers who know James Van Der Beek as Dawson Leery (and/or his highly memed cry face) might find it far-fetched to imagine him as a cult leader, but his work as one of Criminal Minds' most chilling villains proves that he can be versatile. That's not to say that he'd be a cult leader worthy of Criminal Minds on Walker, though, as the showrunner explained:

As grim as Walker could get from time to time over its fourth season – including Cordell's recent near-death experience – the plan was not to go super dark with his new neighbor as a cult leader. I like to imagine their earliest interactions being about soap, since that's what Van Der Beek's character dropped off.

Sadly, imagining is the best that anybody can do after getting the bonus details from Anna Fricke. If you want to revisit the earlier seasons of Walker and/or short-lived spinoff Walker: Independence, you can find both shows streaming with a Max subscription. It remains to be seen when the fourth and final Walker season will be available on the streamer.

It is not unusual for an actor just starting out in the business to film scenes for a movie that, ultimately, never see the light of the day. In fact, it's not out of the ordinary for that same thing to happen to an established A-lister either. See for yourself by taking a look at some of the biggest stars you did not realize were almost in some of your favorite film, if not for the magic of editing.

Ana De Armas (Yesterday)

Yesterday is a universe-altering movie that takes place in a reality in which the Beatles never existed. Coincidentally, there exists an alternate cut of the film featuring Ana de Armas as a Late Late Show guest Himesh Patel’s Jack Malik romantically sings “Something” to. Per writer, Richard Curtis explained that the character was cut to avoid making Jack’s relationship with Ellie (Lily James) any more complicated. Though De Armas did appear in the trailer, and fans pursued legal action against Universal over the marketing.

Kevin Costner (The Big Chill) 

In one of the best movies of the ‘80s, The Big Chill, a group of friends reunite for the funeral of their friend, Alex, who was supposed to be played by the future Oscar-winning star and director of Dances with Wolves (pictured), Kevin Costner. Star Jeff Goldblum told Yahoo! that the Yellowstone cast member was “wonderful” in a flashback scene that was ultimately cut from the 1983 ensemble dramedy, in which his character finds himself reluctant to carve a Thanksgiving turkey and ruin its perfection.

Christopher Lee (The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King)

One of the most important characters from the Lord of the Rings movies, Saruman, is not in the third installment, The Return of the King. Per Ain’t It Cool News, Peter Jackson felt his scene — which was originally shot for The Two Towers — served as more of a wrap-up to the previous film than a suitable beginning for this one. While appearing at University College Dublin, Saruman actor Christopher Lee shared how shocked he was to learn his scene from the Best Picture Oscar winner — in which he stands off against the Fellowship — was cut before recommending the crowd “buy the extended DVDs.”

Harrison Ford (E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial)

Steven Spielberg told EW that, as a favor to him and writer Melissa Mathison (also his then-girlfriend), Harrison Ford shot a scene for E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial as Elliot’s (Henry Thomas) school principal that can be found on YouTube today. It never made the final cut of the 1982 box office smash, but know that had it been included, the star of the Indiana Jones movies (pictured) still would have gone mostly unseen as the camera never shows his face.

Andy García (Dangerous Minds)

Andy García told BlogTalkRadio (via Express) that when he was approached to star in 1995’s Dangerous Minds as a love interest for Michelle Pfeiffer’s inner city teacher, Louanne Johnson, he openly expressed that he found the role unnecessary. Still, the star of Father of the Bride (pictured) shot the scenes that were written for him (but not included in the initial script). But they were indeed removed from the final cut.

James Gandolfini (Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close)

The late James Gandolfini shot scenes for 2011’s Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close as a man Sandra Bullock’s widowed character meets at a 9/11 victims support group meeting. The Sopranos cast member (pictured) was even credited on the Oscar-nominated drama’s poster. According to the LA Times — his role was removed following a poor test audience reception.

Eric Stoltz (Back to the Future)

One of the most infamous examples of an actor cut from a movie — save one frame — is Eric Stoltz, who led the Back to the Future cast for about a month before director Robert Zemeckis and others realized his “intense” approach to the role was not working. As Collider recalls, Zemeckis got approval to reshoot most of the movie and replace Stoltz with their initial choice, Michael J. Fox, whose performance in the time travel movie classic as Marty McFly is iconic.

Ashley Judd (Natural Born Killers)

In a sequence cut from Natural Born Killers (which can be found on YouTube), Ashley Judd plays Grace Mulberry — the sole survivor of Mickey (Woody Harrelson) and Mallory Knox’s (Juliette Lewis) mass teenager murder. She appears in court to be personally cross-examined by Mickey, who then stabs her to death with a pencil on the stand. In an interview for Metrograph, director Oliver Stone recalls removing it for its “length, and violence,” but now believes the “touching” scene belongs in the controversial 1994 satire.

Tobey Maguire (Life Of Pi)

In 2012’s adaptation of the novel, Life of Pi, the title character (portrayed as an older man by Irrfan Khan) recalls his unbelievable story of survival to a writer, played by English actor, Rafe Spall. However, according to USA Today, the role was originally played by Tobey Maguire until director Ang Lee decided the sSpider-Man star (pictured) was too distractingly recognizable and opted for reshoots. 

Chris Cooper (The Ring)

Anyone who ever wondered who Naomi Watts’ Rachel passes the curse tape along to at the end of The Ring should know it was Chris Cooper. The Oscar-winning star of Adaptation. (pictured) told Sci-Fi Wire (via MovieHole) that he shot bookend scenes for the 2002 horror movie classic. One establishes his character as a serial killer and the other shows him receiving the tape. Both were cut for disrupting the flow.

Shailene Woodley (The Amazing Spider-Man 2)

The Amazing Spider-Man franchise was meant to introduce of Shailene Woodley as Mary-Jane Watson to Andrew Garfield’s Peter Parker. Per MovieWeb, the Divergent star did shoot a cameo for TASM 2, which was later cut so she could officially debut in the next film — a plan ruined when the franchise was cancelled completely.

Robert Pattinson (Vanity Fair)

Before Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson played lovers in Water for Elephants, they played mother and son in the 2004 period drama, Vanity Fair. But the then-teenage actor — who went on to hit it big in Twilight (pictured) — was cut from the move, which he discovered while attending the premiere, according to his 2017 W Magazine interview.

Skeet Ulrich (Cursed)

The 2005 werewolf movie, Cursed, marked a reunion for director Wes Craven, writer Kevin Williamson, and original Scream cast member Skeet Ulrich that audiences never saw. According to MovieHole (via Killer Movies), Ulrich — also known for Riverdale (pictured) — was removed in lieu of studio-optioned rewrites and reshoots. But in 2022, the Scream fan site, Hello Sidney, revealed his role via stills from an unreleased director's cut.

Michael Biehn (Terminator 2: Judgment Day)

Despite Kyle Reese' death in 1984’s The Terminator, Michael Biehn reprised the role in the 1991 sequel, which is now regarded one of the greatest action movies of all time. However, according to ScreenRant, the sequence — in which he comes to Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) in a dream — was cut from Terminator 2: Judgment Day to maintain a tighter pace, but was later restored for an extended special edition. 

Angela Bassett (Mr. & Mrs. Smith)

Technically, Angela Bassett is in Mr. & Mrs. Smith, but her part as Brad Pitt’s boss was originally meant to be more than an uncredited voice role. On YouTube, you can find deleted scenes from Doug Liman’s 2004 romantic action-comedy with the two-time Oscar nominee appearing in person alongside Keith David as Father.

Adrien Brody (The Thin Red Line)

Several major actors had their roles were either severely trimmed or completely removed from Terrence Malick’s 1998 war epic, The Thin Red Line, like including Mickey Rourke and George Clooney, as ScreenRant recalls. However, Academy Award-winner Adrien Brody’s character, Cpl. Fife, was the central lead of James Jones' original novel and had even done press for the film when he discovered right before the premiere that he was barely in it, per The Independent (via Eskimo).

Mick Jagger (Fitzcarraldo)

Mick Jagger’s underrated acting skills were praised by Werner Herzog (per Playboy, via The Local), who cast the rock star in his 1982 adventure film, Fitzcarraldo. Unfortunately, according to Far Out, multiple problems facing the production — including star Jason Robards’ dysyntery, as the New York Times reported — caused a delay that interfered with The Rolling Stone's touring schedule. Thus, Herzog was forced to recast Robards’ title role with Klaus Kinski and write Jagger’s character out entirely.

Matt Damon (Ocean's 8)

Ocean’s 8 had some fun cameos from members of Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s Eleven cast — namely Elliott Gould’s Rueben and Shaobo Qin as Yen — but we almost saw more. In addition to the late Carl Reiner telling Vanity Fair he filmed a scene with Sandra Bullock, THR reports that Matt Damon's cameo as Linus Caldwell from the 2001 heist favorite (pictured) was taken out due to “editorial and storytelling reasons,” as director Gary Ross claimed. The article does, however, mention a petition to remove Damon following comments he made about the #MeToo movement and Harvey Weinstein scandal.

Michelle Monaghan (Constantine, Syriana)

When Michelle Monaghan spoke to MovieHole to promote Mission: Impossible III, it was mentioned that she was removed from two different movies released in 2005: Constantine and Syriana. The fantasy comic book movie did preserve one of her scenes, but she's nowhere to be found in Steven Soderbergh’s Oscar-winning political drama, which already had many storylines to juggle, as Monaghan herself mentioned.

Tim Roth (Once Upon A Time In Hollywood)

Tim Roth is in many of Quentin Tarantino’s best movies — including Pulp Fiction (pictured) — and came very close to joining 2019’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. But Tarantino was orced to remove Roth's part to avoid a five-hour runtime. Roth did share in an interview with Uproxx that he appreciated, at least, being mentioned in the credits as “cut.”

Ellen Pompeo (Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind) 

As a video essay by Film Radar demonstrates, if Ellen Pompeo role’s in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind had not been removed, we would have seen Michel Gondry’s trippy romantic sci-fi dramedy in a whole different light. In deleted scenes, the Grey’s Anatomy star plays Naomi — the woman Jim Carrey’s Joel left for Clementine (Kate Winslet) and whom he reconciles with after his memory wipe. Though he leaves her again when he meets Clementine on the train, unaware he has done this before.

Paul Rudd (Bridesmaids)

The Bridesmaids cast included plenty of funny people, but did you know Paul Rudd was also part of it for a moment? Director Paul Feig told EW he “felt bad” cutting the Ant-Man actor’s darkly funny cameo as Annie’s (co-writer Kristen Wiig) deranged blind date, but did so to shave down the runtime and avoid distracting from Annie’s love triangle with Ted (Jon Hamm) and Rhodes (Chris O’Dowd).

Katherine Langford (Avengers: Endgame)

In a deleted scene from Avengers: Endgame, immediately after Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) “snaps” Thanos (Josh Brolin) away, he is given the chance to say one final goodbye to an older version of his daughter, Morgan (Katherine Langford), in the Soulworld. At least the sequence’s omission gives Langford a chance to play a different Marvel character at some point, hopefully.

Uma Thurman (Savages) 

The 2012 crime drama Savages could have been touted as a reunion between John Travolta and Uma Thurman, who first worked together on Pulp Fiction (pictured), had the latter’s role as Ophelia’s (Blake Lively) mother not been removed. Director Oliver Stone revealed to Huff Post that Paqu was actually one of several character from Don Winslow’s novel did not make it into the movie due to time constraints.

Amy Poehler (Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy)

When mentioning her axed cameo as a bank teller in 2004’s Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy with Vulture, Amy Poehler admits she correctly predicted the movie was already too long to keep her scene, which also featured fellow SNL star Maya Rudolph as a gang leader. Thankfully, the Parks and Rec cast member did appear in the 2013 sequel alongside her buddy, Tina Fey.

Rachel Weisz (To The Wonder)

In 2012, Rachel Weisz spoke to La Stampa (via EW) about how she had the pleasure of working with Terrence Malick on To the Wonder, but would “not have the pleasure of seeing [her] work.” For unknown reasons, the Oscar-winning star of The Constant Gardener (pictured) was removed from the romantic drama starring Ben Affleck and Olga Kurylenko. And she wasn't alone, as IndieWire later reported that Barry Pepper, Michael Sheen and Amanda Peet were also missing from the final cut.

Viggo Mortenson (The Purple Rose Of Cairo)

One of the first movies Academy Award nominee Viggo Mortenson worked on was Woody Allen’s 1985 fantasy rom-com, The Purple Rose of Cairo. The star of the Lord of the Rings movies (pictured) spoke to ABC News' Peter Travers about how his frustrating experience shooting the film turned out to be meaningless since he was edited out the movie after it was released.

Matthew Fox (World War Z)

The 2013 adaptation of Max Brooks’ World War Z was plagued by rewrites and reshoots that resulted in an entirely new third act from what was intended. As a result, Lost cast member Matthew Fox’s role as a paratrooper was scaled down to just one line of dialogue, which may have been disappointing for the self-proclaimed fan of the OG book, per Huff Post.

Jack Whitehall (Frozen)

In a clip shared to Jack Whitehall’s official YouTube channel, the British comedian shares with an audience how his one-line role as a troll in Disney’s Oscar-winning animated film, Frozen, was reduced to a non-speaking part. The Jungle Cruise cast member and star of Clifford the Big Red Dog (pictured) goes on to say that, after discovering his line was removed when he first saw the movie, a friend of his found a photo of him at a Frozen press junket and meme-ified it. 

James Van Der Beek (Storytelling)

Tom Solondz’s 2002 anthology dramedy, Storytelling, consists of two segments dealing with various challenging topics, but there were original three. As EW reported, the omitted third chapter starred James Van Der Beek — known for being part of the Dawson’s Creek cast and Varsity Blues (pictured) — as a high school football player discovering he's gay.

Sienna Miller (Black Mass)

Before the 2015 crime thriller released, it was already confirmed tha Sienna Miller had been cut from Black Mass. She was cast as Catherine Greig, who had a relationship infamous gangster, Whitey Bulger (played by Johnny Depp in the film). Director Scott Cooper admitted to The Boston Globe that it was a difficult decision to remove the English actor -- then best known for American Sniper (pictured) -- but it ultimately “came down to narrative choices.”

Jena Malone (Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice)

Following previous rumors that she would play Robin, Jena Malone’s comic book movie debut in Zack Snyder’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice actually never made it to the big screen. Luckily, her role as head S.T.A.R. Labs scientist Jenet Klyburn — first revealed in leaked footage —  would be included in the 2016 DC movie’s three-hour “Ultimate Cut."

So if your friends ever quiz you about has or hasn't starred in major movies, this list should provide you with some interesting loopholes.

Plenty of icons from the ‘90s reunited at ‘90s Con Tampa over the weekend, including the cast of Boy Meets World. With Danielle Fishel, Will Friedle, and Rider Strong among the cast that appeared at the convention in Florida, they documented fun moments on social media. The trio even had a run-in with ‘90s icon Mark-Paul Gosselaar while also making jokes about how much he looks like Dawson's Creek's James Van Der Beek.

The Saved By the Bell star recorded an episode of the Boy Meets World rewatch podcast, Pod Meets World, over the summer. While Gosselaar admitted that he does sometimes get mistakenly "recognized" for Boy Meets World instead of his own show, he said that he would deliberately send his friends memes of James Van Der Beek since he thinks that’s the closest in terms of similarity. Between the long names, starring roles on teen shows, and resemblance, Gosselaar and Van Der Beek might as well be twins. 

Fishel, Friedle, and Strong met up with Gosselaar at ‘90s Con and posted a photo to Instagram where they said they were “thrilled” to meet Van Der Beek, and it was great:

It’s definitely great to see all four of them together since it’s like worlds colliding. What makes it even funnier is that people may not know what the caption means unless they listen to Pod Meets World. Whether you're in on that podcast joke or not, though, can anybody really deny the resemblance between the former Boy Meets World star and former Dawson's Creek star? 

The run-in with Gosselaar is made even better by the fact that Fishel, Friedle, and Strong shared a photo with Van Der Beek the previous week while promoting the Saved By the Bell star’s episode. Given the fact that Gosselaar's episode also dropped at the beginning of the month and then ‘90s Con happened a couple weeks later, it was perfect timing. 

What would really make things better is if the Dawson’s Creek star ended up as a guest on Pod Meets World as well! It would also be a dream if he and Mark-Paul Gosselaar met up at one of these conventions so fans could do a double take. It’s something that I think the world needs. At least fans can have the interaction with the Boy Meets World crew, which is better than nothing.

Despite being a Boy Meets World podcast, Pod Meets World has brought on a number of stars that weren’t on the TGIF series. Along with MPG, the podcast welcomed Full House's Jodie Sweetin and Andrea Barber, both separately and together, to promote their own rewatch podcast, How Rude, Tanneritos! Melissa Joan Hart was also on an episode, and it just brought back all of the ‘90s feels. He may not be in Hollywood anymore, but hopefully James Van Der Beek appears on an episode soon to continue that nostalgia.

If you want to revisit these lookalikes' iconic characters, you can find Dawson's Creek streaming with a Max subscription and the Saved by the Bell revival with a Peacock subscription. 

It used to be common for major actors to live in Hollywood or its sister acting city New York, but over the past several years a slew of celebrities have shifted away from that mindset, leaving Tinseltown. The list of celebrities no longer calling Los Angeles home is varied, from Marvel stars like Chris Hemsworth to a-listers like Matthew McConaughey and even famous TV personalities like James Van Der Beek. Now, Modern Family star Ariel Winter has explained why she’s also continued the trend. 

Ariel Winter has lived in Los Angeles for most of her life, unlike the myriad transplants and actor hopefuls who head there every year. However, she recently revealed on her Modern Family co-star Julie Bowen’s podcast Quitters that during the pandemic she’d really been thinking about what would lie ahead if she moved. She noted people always asked her “where would I go?”

Ariel Winter and her boyfriend Luke Benward moved from California to Virginia, where Winter was originally born before starting work in Hollywood at a young age. The actress notes she still has family in the area, and while the move was a momentous decision, she just told herself, “If I don’t like it somewhere I can leave.” 

It might seem like a huge jump to exit the place you’ve lived for the majority of your life and take a car across the country to move to the opposite coast, but Ariel Winter says the move really made sense for herself and her partner. She says, in fact, that she never enjoyed living in LA. 

The Modern Family star is active on social media and from her comments to Julie Bowen and co. seems to want to be able to control her own narrative, which was difficult to do in sunny California. She went on to say “fame” is not something she’s ever “really had an interest in,” though she has moved to a place where a few other “industry” people have already relocated. Interestingly, her comments mirror those Matthew McConaughey’s wife Camila Alves made several months ago. In the case of the McConaughey family, they moved from Hollywood to Texas so their kids could have a more “private” way to grow up. 

He’s not the only one to move away from the spotlight, as Jason Segel moved to a “small farm town” to get out of the limelight, similar to what Ariel Winter is saying here. And Chris Hemsworth and his wife Elsa Pataky also left LA so they wouldn’t be in “the eye of the storm” and could recharge in Australia. 

Winter’s been out of California for a few months now, but she’ll still likely spend a considerable amount of time there as acting gigs take her back and forth between the two coasts, as she’s been busy since Modern Family wrapped. In fact, she recently was greenlighted for a brand new TV pilot, Hungry, from Hot In Cleveland creator Suzanne Martin. For now, though, she seems to be settling in for a new life that involves way few paparazzi photos. Given the brouhaha surrounding Ariel Winter’s changing body as an actress on the ABC sitcom, I can’t really blame her. 

Hollywood may be the place to be if you’re trying to break into the industry or work as much as possible. However, increasingly a slew of celebrities have shifted away from the California Mecca to call another place their home. In fact, Varsity Blues, Dawson’s Creek and Don’t Trust The B—- star James Van Der Beek opened up about leaving Hollywood for Texas, similar to Matthew McConaughey, Camila Alves and their kids. He also shared why leaving Tinseltown was the right call for himself, his wife Kimberly and their six children. 

You can see his full Instagram post and beautiful family, below.

James Van Der Beek and his wife and kids were among the many, many people who shifted to new locales during the pandemic. Back in September of 2020, they announced they would be moving from Los Angeles to Texas. They previously owned a home in Beverly Hills and had traded that in for a large ranch outside of Austin,  Texas where they seem to enjoy a lot of time out of doors – even doing things like building chicken coops these days.

His posts about spending family time out in nature really do remind me of the McConaughey family, who also resides in Austin. Previously, Camila Alves opened up about why she and Matthew McConaughey decided to move to Texas, and the feeling of community and the “outdoors” were both reasons she mentioned for wanting to switch states. Since then McConaughey has gotten involved in the community and has even talked about politics, seemingly enjoying the Texas life. His wife has called it a "great transition" and seemingly the Van Der Beeks would agree.

Now that people are moving around a lot more, the family was grateful to take a trip to Los Angeles where they could spend time with the people they love in sunny California. But James Van Der Beek noted that in many ways, Los Angeles wasn’t his place anymore.

I think a lot of people who have moved from someplace that didn’t quite fit to someplace that firmly feels like theirs can identify with the actor’s comments on the matter. Particularly these days, when virtual work has enabled more people to shift and try new places and locales on for size. 

Notably, he’s not alone on the list of celebrities defecting from Los Angeles either. As I mentioned, Chris Hemsworth and Elsa Pataky are notable for exiting Hollywood and plenty of other celebrities have also left, from Zac Efron (who seemingly quit the U.S. altogether) to Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Hilarie Burton and the aforementioned Matthew McConaughey and Camila Alves. Intriguingly, one of James Van Der Beek’s most famous movies, Varsity Blues, was set in West Canaan, Texas – though the actor originally hails from Connecticut. 

We all love a good cameo by a celebrity appearing as themselves for a brief, but fun, little moment. However, what I have always found more amusing is when a famous person portrays themselves in a more prominent starring role from a movie, or in a TV guest appearance that serves as the main focus of that episode (or episodes), or even as the lead of the whole story. With Nicolas Cage playing himself in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, we wanted to take a look at our picks for some more of the best performances by athletes, musicians, or actors who played themselves.

Neil Patrick Harris (Harold & Kumar Movies)

Future How I Met Your Mother cast member Neil Patrick Harris was still best known as the star of Doogie Howser M.D. when he stole the show in the 2004 stoner comedy classic Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle as a highly dramatized version of himself. The Emmy nominee would reprise the role in two sequels that more heavily blend the actor’s reality with increasingly absurd fiction, including getting kicked out of Heaven by Jesus in A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas after he was previously gunned down by prostitutes in Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. 

Cate Blanchett (Coffee And Cigarettes)

Every vignette in Coffee and Cigarettes - Jim Jarmusch’s 2003 anthology of short films starring celebrities as themselves - is gold, but Cate Blanchett leads one of the more unique and thought-provoking of the bunch called “Cousins.” The segment is, additionally, one of the most profound testaments of the two-time Oscar winner’s chameleonic talent, as she makes it so easy to forget she is playing both herself and her brunette relative, Shelly, who struggle to relate to each other while catching up in a hotel lobby.

James Van Der Beek (Don’t Trust The B**** In Apartment 23)

In 2012, James Van Der Beek made his big return to TV as a series regular on Don’t Trust the B**** in Apartment 23 in a role very close to his heart: James Van Der Beek. The actor brilliantly pokes fun at his post-leading the Dawson’s Creek cast career and predicts his future Dancing with the Stars stint as the famous best friend of Krysten Ritter’s Chloe - the title character of ABC’s short-lived, but much-acclaimed, comedy.

Bill Murray (Zombieland)

Most people would consider Bill Murray’s surprise appearance in Zombieland to be one of the greatest cameos of his career (and there are several incredible examples to choose from). However, with only four other characters in the main cast of the classic 2009 zombie comedy, I think we can justifiably count the Oscar nominee’s iconic, hilariously dead-pan portrayal as his post-apocalyptic self as a starring role despite lasting mere minutes. 

Keanu Reeves (Always Be My Maybe)

Another example of a relatively brief appearance that still earns the right to be called a starring role occurs in 2019’s Always Be My Maybe when Marcus (Randall Park) is shocked to learn that his childhood friend (and crush), Sasha (Ali Wong) is dating none other than Keanu Reeves. The John Wick star pulls no punches in his partially improvised portrayal of a wonderfully absurd version of himself in the Netflix original rom-com, in which, during a restaurant double-date, he shows up wearing glasses with no lenses and asks the waiter for a dish that plays with “the concept of time.”

Heather Langenkamp (New Nightmare)

After playing Nancy Kerrigan in two Nightmare on Elm Street movies made her one of the top Scream Queens of the 1980s, Heather Langenkamp would give, arguably, her best performance in the franchise when she returned - not as Nancy, but as herself - in 1994’s New Nightmare. The cleverly meta thriller, in which the actress is taunted by a demon assuming the appearance of Freddy Krueger, also stars fellow horror icon Robert Englund as this new take on the iconic villain and himself as well as writer and director Wes Craven.

The Beatles (A Hard Day’s Night)

The cinematic phenomenon of famous musicians offering a fictionalized peek into their lives off-stage (such as Nick Cave in 2014’s quasi-documentary 20,000 Days on Earth or Foo Fighters in the horror-comedy Studio 666 more recently) arguably began with The Beatles. John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr exhibit solid comedic timing and profound athleticism while running from a swarm of screaming fans in 1964’s A Hard Day’s Night - the first of a number of dramatized films the Fab Four made together.

LeBron James (Trainwreck)

Pro basketball star LeBron James has portrayed himself onscreen several times and most recently in 2021’s Space Jam: A New Legacy - a sequel to the hit Michael Jordan/Looney Tunes collaboration from 1996. However, the Los Angeles Lakers’ Small Forward received the most acclaim of his acting career so far for playing himself in Trainwreck - star and writer Amy Schumer’s 2015 rom-com which depicts him and Bill Hader’s “sports doctor to the stars” as best friends.

Stan Lee (Mallrats)

Before his heartbreaking death in 2018, Stan Lee perfected the art of the cameo by appearing in countless Marvel movies. One of his first and most prominent acting gigs (for which he was actually mentioned in the opening credits, too) was as himself in Kevin Smith’s 1995 Clerks follow-up, Mallrats. The comic book icon makes you a “true believer” in his acting ability when he shows up for a couple of scenes to give comic book-obsessed Brody (Jason Lee) some much-needed relationship advice. 

Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm)

It is no secret among die-hard Seinfeld fans that Jason Alexander’s deeply neurotic and troublesome character, George Costanza, was heavily inspired by the personality and life experiences of co-creator Larry David. On his follow-up to Seinfeld - the long-running, HBO original comedy Curb Your Enthusiasm - David has earned several Emmy Award nominations for playing a version of himself who makes George look like a saint, burning bridges with Hollywood heavies and alienating friends and average bystanders at every turn.  

Kate Winslet (Extras)

Star and co-creator Ricky Gervais’ Hollywood satire Extras is chock full of amazing celebrity guest appearances, but Kate Winslet made a damn good case to be considered the funniest in the Emmy-winning comedy’s history. The British Titanic star is seen playing a nun on the set of a film about the Holocaust (which she admits she agreed to star in purely to win an Oscar, having not yet won for The Reader) before later proving herself to be a master in double entendres when offering fellow extra, Maggie Jacobs (Ashley Jensen), phone sex tips.

John Malkovich (Being John Malkovich)

It is a bit rare for an actor to appear in a movie as him or herself while also playing the title character, but 1999’s Being John Malkovich - from from writer Charlie Kaufman and director Spike Jonze - is also a rare kind of movie, and in many ways, too. The two-time Oscar nominee is understandably shocked and frightened by the discovery that a Manhattan puppeteer (John Cusack) has been using a magical portal to be able to take a walk in his shoes for 15 minutes at a time in this wildly creative comedy.

Bruce Campbell (My Name Is Bruce)

Another rare example of an actor playing themselves in the titular role of a film is Bruce Campbell in My Name is Bruce, which is also the last film the B-movie icon directed himself. Campbell is hilarious in the 2007 horror-comedy as a boozy, washed-up version of himself who is forced to channel his iconic Evil Dead character, Ash Williams, in order to defeat a demon wreaking havoc on a small town in Oregon.

Oprah Winfrey (30 Rock)

Another example of a memorably, and often awkwardly, hilarious guest appearance on an acclaimed TV comedy is Oprah Winfrey on Season 3 of 30 Rock. Liz Lemon (star and creator Tina Fey) is delighted to find the larger-than-life media mogul seated next to her on an airplane and cannot help but seize the opportunity to received a dose of wisdom, but who could really blame her for that?

Kevin Garnett (Uncut Gems)

As much as I agree that Adam Sandler deserved greater awards attention for his lead performance in the relentless 2019 thriller Uncut Gems, I think we should be more angry at the fact that former NBA player Kevin Garnett received no awards attention at all. I would go so far as to say I’m glad the Safdie Brothers did not get the athlete they originally wrote the part for (the Knicks’ Amar’e Stoudemire) because Garnett is electrifying as himself (circa 2012), whose interest in a rare opal sets off a series of increasingly dire circumstances for the Sandler as self-destructive jeweler, Howard Ratner.

The This Is The End Cast

The whole point of Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s 2013 directorial debut This is the End is to watch the entire cast (including Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Craig Robinson, and many, many more) as hilariously exaggerated versions of themselves who struggle to endure the Apocalypse and a merciless barrage of gags at their expense. Highlights also include an excruciatingly vain (and demonically possessed) Jonah Hill; a lewd, coke-snorting Michael Cera; an axe-wielding Emma Watson; and Channing Tatum employed by a cannibalistic Danny McBride as his sex slave.

You've got to love seeing a famous person let loose and introduce a different, completely fictional side of themselves to the world on screen. I cannot wait to see more examples of actors playing themselves in the future.

In the pantheon of great actors passing advice onto the younger generation, not every story ends with a polite and deep connection. Sometimes, you get a story like that time where Sir Lawrence Olivier told Dustin Hoffman to “try acting, my dear boy” after going full method during Marathon Man. However, in the best of times, when mentor and mentee share a profound moment of tutelage, you get something like when James Van Der Beek and Jon Voight bonded during the production of Varsity Blues. That advice was basically to embrace your fans as they have embraced you.

James Van Der Beek was a recent guest on IMDb’s That Scene with Dan Patrick, and during their conversation, the Dawson’s Creek star shared an incredible story that encapsulated that advice. Though it wasn’t freely given, as a random encounter on the set of Varsity Blues inspired the moment that saw Jon Voight interacting with one of his own fans in one of the sweetest ways. James Van Der Beek recalled the story as follows:

It does seem a bit weird if you’re looking back at Anaconda today and thinking about the fact that Jon Voight was being called out for that particular project at the moment. But after the film’s release in 1997 saw a pretty impressive run that hauled in three times the production budget, and more than likely won over tons of fans on home video, it’s not hard to see why Voight would indulge a young fan in his want to go back to some of his favorite scenes. It's something that even James Van Der Beek would inevitably encounter himself.

As he would not only have Dawson’s Creek making an imprint on anyone who grew up in the ‘90s, but also Varsity Blues as a Van Der Beek calling card, he obviously knew that he’d have to deal with his adoring crowd somehow. So when you have an acting legend like Jon Voight on set, there’s an opportunity to become a student and learn a valuable lesson. Engaging Voight on that very quest, James Van Der Beek received this advice:

Fame can be hard on an actor, whether you’re someone who’s had a long and storied career, or if you’re the latest overnight sensation looking to keep it fresh. Varsity Blues was certainly the type of movie to act as a crossroads for such talents, with James Van Der Beek and Jon Voight making a movie about the expectations of your elders, and choosing whether you do or don’t want their life. If it wasn’t for the infamous whipped cream bikini scene, you could practically watch this movie with your parents.

Thankfully, James Van Der Beek and Jon Voight didn’t clash as harshly as Mox and Coach Kilmer did on screen, with that advice really coming in handy. While there’s been some moments that Van Der Beek has found himself in a bit of a tight spot when dealing with the Dawson’s Creek legacy, he seems to have a pretty easy tapping into the love that his career has earned him. With Varsity Blues apparently undergoing a reboot for a new age of fans to fall in love with its charms, maybe James Van Der Beek should look into jumping on board, as a tribute to his acting mentor. Of course, that’s provided that someone bought the project from its previous home, Quibi. If that fails, there’s always that Anaconda reboot in the works!

As the theme song famously noted, the characters in Dawson's Creek didn't want to wait for their lives to be over. They wanted to know, right now, what would it be. Now that it's been nearly 18 years since The WB drama series left the air in 2003, it can feel like a lifetime has passed since these characters were regularly seen on TVs. When the show finished its run, several of the actors involved moved on to many different, often exciting, new projects. Notably, one star in particular has found incredible critical and commercial success throughout her prestigious, award-winning acting career.

Still, it's hard to know where Katie Holmes, James Van Der Beek, Joshua Jackson, Michelle Williams, and Busy Phillips (to name a few) would be today if it weren't for this beloved high school drama. But, what have they done with their lives since? Well, let's find out!

James Van Der Beek (Dawson Leery)

As the titular Dawson Leery, James Van Der Beek found his star-making role in this WB drama series. During his time on the show, the actor would also star in Varsity Blues, Texas Rangers, The Rules of Attraction, and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. After Dawson's Creek came to an end, Van Der Beek gained acclaim for playing a fictionalized version of himself on Don't Trust The B---- In Apartment 23. He was also in the main cast for CSI: Cyber, and he voices a role on Vampirina. He was in Pose, and starred in Labor Day, Downsizing, Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, and the short film, Power/Rangers, which he co-wrote. Most recently, Van Der Beek appeared on Season 28 of Dancing with the Stars. He'll be seen in Bad Hair next month, and also starred in Quibi's Princess Bride remake.

Katie Holmes (Joey Potter)

Playing the part of Joey Potter, Katie Holmes had one of the lead roles in Dawson's Creek. Previously best known for The Ice Storm, her screen debut, this WB series paved the way for Holmes' career as an actress. Through the show's success, Holmes played prominent roles in Go, Teaching Mrs. Tingle, Wonder Boys, The Gift, Phone Booth, and Pieces of April, all during her time on the series. When the show wrapped, Holmes was most notably seen in Batman Begins, Thank You For Smoking, Mad Money, Don't Be Afraid of the Dark, Jack and Jill, The Giver, Miss Meadows, Woman in Gold, and Logan Lucky. Plus, in 2016, Holmes made her directorial debut with the indie drama All We Had, which the first-time filmmaker also produced and starred in. Earlier this year, Holmes starred in Brahms: The Boy II and The Secret: Dare to Dream.

Michelle Williams (Jen Lindley)

As Jen Lindley, a New York City transplant in the town of Capeside, MA, Michelle Williams found fame through her main role on Dawson's Creek. Since then, Williams has received a great deal of acclaim and accolades for her dramatic film performances, notably in Wendy And Lucy, My Week With Marilyn (for which she won a Golden Globe), Blue Valentine, Manchester by the Sea, Brokeback Mountain, Take This Waltz, Meek's Cutoff, and more. Williams currently has four Oscar nominations, and she also won an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her lead performance in the miniseries, Fosse/Verdon. Additionally, Williams also earned a Tony nomination for her 2016 performance in Blackbird. She was also seen in Venom, Shutter Island, The Greatest Showman, and Oz the Great and Powerful. Most recently, Williams starred in After the Wedding. Next, she'll be seen in Venom: Let There Be Carnage.

Joshua Jackson (Pacey Witter)

In the role of Pacey Witter, a longtime friend of Dawson and Joey's (with strong romantic feelings for the latter), Joshua Jackson stole many hearts during his time on Dawson's Creek. His character was a constant presence throughout the show's entire run, and he fueled a burning love triangle between the three lead characters. Prior to his role in this series, Jackson was best known for The Mighty Ducks movies and Scream 2. During his time at the Creek, Jackson was also seen in Cruel Intentions, Muppets From Space, and The Skulls. When the show wrapped, Jackson became the star of Fringe and The Affair. He also starred in Cursed, Bobby, Shutter, One Week, Lay the Favorite, and Bobby, to name a few films. Last year, the actor starred in Netflix's acclaimed mini-series, When They See Us. He was last seen in Hulu's Little Fires Everywhere.

Mary Beth Peil (Evelyn Ryan)

As Evelyn Ryan, Jen's grandmother, Mary Beth Peil was seen throughout all six seasons of Dawson's Creek. Once primarily a stage and opera actress, Peil didn't make her screen debut until 1992's Jersey Girl. Therefore, Dawson's Creek became one of the actress's first prominent screen roles. Following her time on this popular series, Peil starred in 2004's The Stepford Wives, Shortbus, Flags of Our Fathers, Mirrors, and Collateral Beauty. She also appeared in nearly fifty episodes of The Good Wife, as well as episodes of Fringe and Law & Order: SVU. In this time, Peil still acted on stage, notably in productions of Nine, Sunday in the Park with George, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, Follies, and Anastasia, for which she received a Tony nomination. Most recently, she starred in the short-lived series Katy Keene earlier this year.

Mary-Margaret Humes (Gail Leery)

In the role of Gail Leery, Dawson's mom, Mary-Margaret Humes played a primary role in the first four seasons of Dawson's Creek, followed by recurring appearances in Seasons 5 and 6. The former Miss Florida USA winner has appeared in more than 50 shows over the course of her acting career, including The Dukes of Hazzard, The Love Boat, The A-Team, Knight Rider, Matlock, Blossom, Murphy Brown, and more. Dawson's Creek, however, remains her most well-known role. Since the series concluded, Humes continued to appear on various TV shows, including Grey's Anatomy, CSI: NY, Criminal Minds, Luck, and Saving Grace. She also starred in several TV movies. The more recent ones include 2018's Home By Spring and Christmas in Love, and 2019's A Feeling of Home and Winter Love Story. In February, Humes starred in A Valentine's Match.

Nina Repeta (Bessie Potter)

Playing the part of Bessie Potter, Joey's sister, Nina Repeta was seen throughout all six seasons of Dawson's Creek. Prior to her role in this WB series, Repeta appeared in episodes of Matlock and starred in Radioland Murders. Additionally, during her time on Dawson's Creek, the actress was also seen in 2002's Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. Since the show's finale, however, Repeta hasn't appeared on screen quite as consistently as some of her former Dawson's Creek co-stars. She's appeared in episodes of Palmetto Pointe, The Originals, and Good Behavior, also starring in Southern Gothic, The Remaining, and The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water. Most recently, Repeta starred in the 2018 short film, Long Drive To Yadkin. She had a child in 2008, which might explain why she hasn't appeared in as many movies and shows since Creek wrapped up in 2003.

John Wesley Shipp (Mitch Leery)

As Dawson's dad, Mitch Leery, John Wesley Shipp was seen prevalently throughout the first four seasons of Dawson's Creek. Before he joined this WB series, Shipp was best known for playing the lead character on The Flash in the early '90s. The actor also appeared on soap operas like As the World Turns and Guiding Light throughout the '80s. Following his time in Dawson's Creek, Shipp appeared in One Life To Live, and he was also seen in episodes of Teen Wolf, Drop Dead Diva, JAG, CSI: NY, and The Closer before he reprised his role as Barry Allen in The CW's The Flash, also playing this part in episodes of Supergirl and Arrow. Most recently, Shipp was in an episode of Blindspot, and starred in the TV movie Ruby Herring Mysteries: Prediction Murder. Next, he'll be seen in Climbing Life.

Kerr Smith (Jack McPhee)

Playing Jack McPhee, Kerr Smith was a primary cast member on Dawson's Creek from his Season 2 introduction through the show's sixth season. His role gained considerable attention, particularly for sharing what was considered "TV's first passionate kiss between two men" with Adam Kaufman. Prior to playing Jack, Smith was notably seen in The Broken Hearts Club and As the World Turns, but while the show was on the air, he starred in Final Destination. After the Creek ran dry, he played a main role in E-Ring, Justice, and Life Unexpected. He also had recurring roles on CSI: NY, Eli Stone, NCIS, The Fosters, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and, most recently, Riverdale. Kerr also starred in Cruel Intentions 3, My Bloody Valentine 3D, and When Hope Grows. Additionally, last year, Smith starred in episodes of NCIS: Los Angeles and Into the Dark.

Meredith Monroe (Andie McPhee)

Playing the part of Andie McPhee, an academic, ambitious fellow classmate at Capeside High School, Meredith Monroe joined Dawson's Creek in Season 2 and became a main cast member in Seasons 3 and 4. During her time on the show, Monroe was also seen in Minority Report, New Best Friend, and Manhood. Since Dawson's Creek came to a close, the actress has bounced between film and television, notably with her recurring role in Criminal Minds, Hart of Dixie, and 13 Reasons Why, as well as roles in NCIS, Bones, CSI, Psych, Hawaii FIve-0, CSI: NY, House, Cold Case, Wake, Castle, Drop Dead Diva, Private Practice, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, S.W.A.T., and The Edge of Seventeen.

Busy Phillips (Audrey Liddell)

As Audrey Liddell, Busy Phillips joined Dawson's Creek in Season 5 and became a main cast member for the show's sixth and final season. Prior to her role in this WB drama, Phillips was best known for her work in the beloved short-lived sitcom, Freaks & Geeks. Following the show's conclusion, Phillips became better known for her standout role in Cougar Town. She also played roles in ER, Love, Inc., Undeclared, Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles, Vice Principals, and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. She also starred in White Chicks, He's Just Not That Into You, Made of Honor, The Gift, and I Feel Pretty. From 2018-2019, Phillips hosted her own talk show, Busy Tonight. Additionally, in 2018, Phillips published her memoir, This Will Only Hurt A Little, which became a New York Times bestseller. She also recently appeared in an episode of Camping.

Chad Michael Murray (Charlie Todd)

Just a couple years before he played the lead role in One Tree Hill, Chad Michael Murray played Charlie Todd, Jen's college boyfriend, in Dawson's Creek's fifth season. In what is certainly his most noteworthy "before he was famous" role, this appearance helped to solidify Murray as a mainstay on The WB/CW. This tradition continues as the TV actor is currently playing a role in Riverdale. In addition, he's also known for his roles in Freaky Friday, A Cinderella Story, 2005's House of Wax, and Fruitvale Station. He also played a supporting role in Agent Carter, and appeared in Left Behind, The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts Of Georgia, and A Madea Christmas. Murray was recently seen in Survive the Night, and a pair of holiday-themed movies, Write Before Christmas and Love in Winterland.

Who is your favorite Dawson's Creek star? Let us know in the comments!

During Criminal Minds’ fifteen season run, the team battled a lot of unsubs. They all live on via reruns, but most of them, of course, eventually blend into each other in the minds of all but the most obsessive fans. There are a few notable exceptions, of course, one being James Van Der Beek’s three-headed, multiple-personality serial killer Tobias Hankel. The character was featured in a two episode run that began after the Super Bowl and is remembered not only for the extra eyeballs it got but also for Van Der Beek’s memorable performance, which was not easy to pull off.

If there was any evidence needed for how memorable the turn was, look no further than the fact that the actor is still being asked about it more than ten years later. The most recent chat occurred during a discussion with TV Insider, and during it, James Van Der Beek talked about the hardest part of pulling off the role…

You just never quite know how it’s all going to come out until you see how your performance actually looks through the camera. I would imagine it’s a moment of nerves for even seasoned actors with a lot of success like Van Der Beek. He confirmed as much in the same chat when he talked about the excitement you feel when you try something and the immediate on-set feedback you get is that it’s working. Here the actor talks about his nerves and the positive feelings when he got a response from those around him in the moment…

It might seem relatively easy to make a detective style procedural, but an overwhelming majority never find the right chemistry between their characters or the right small wrinkle to set themselves apart. Even those that do, however, often fail in the later seasons as they struggle to evolve while trying to hold onto what made it all work in the first place. Criminal Minds saw an unusual amount of cast turnover during its run. Some of that was due to life circumstances. Some of that was due to bad creative decisions and some of that was due to unfortunate incidents. Of course all of this affected the quality some. There were certainly individual seasons that were better than others, but on the whole, you can watch a Criminal Minds episode in Season 2 or one in Season 13 and still see the same spark.

That success is due to the writers, the cast and all of the wonderful guest actors like James Van Der Beek who really bought into their characters, no matter how ridiculous they may have been, and just went for it. The extra effort was worth it, and it’s very appreciated by fans, even more than a decade later.

Former Pose star and Dawson's Creek heartthrob James Van Der Beek and his wife Kimberly experienced quite an unfortunate situation late last year when the latter had suffered a miscarriage only a month after they had announced she was expecting their sixth child. The couple apparently got a dose of good news earlier this year when they learned Kimberly was pregnant again, but Van Der Beek revealed in an emotional message to fans that Kimberly recently had another miscarriage.

Below you can read the first part of James Van Der Beek's emotional frank Instagram post.

In the first part of his post, James Van Der Beek referenced the extremely public way that Kimberly's first miscarriage was shared with the world. For those who may not remember, Van Der Beek was a contestant in Season 28 of Dancing with the Stars. During the semi-final rounds, the actor shared the miscarriage news on an episode, saying that Kimberly was the one who convinced him to stick with the show and continue competing. Unfortunately, that ended up being the same episode where he was eliminated – though Ally Brooke attempted to sacrifice her spot to get him back – with former Bachelorette star Hannah Brown going on to win.

As revealed above, James and Kimberly Van Der Beek agreed to keep the news private about her latest pregnancy. It's quite tragic that they had to end up updating friends and fans with this resolution, as opposed to a more positive outcome. Below, James Van Der Beek went into more detail, and also offered some hopeful thoughts for anyone taking the time to read them. In his words:

Clearly, James Van Der Beek is feeling a major loss after his wife went through her second miscarriage in only eight months. As grateful as he might be for the medical staff that got Kimberly through the ordeal, presumably without any major issues, the actor was definitely also overwhelmed by other emotions.

Rather than keeping the focus entirely on his own devastating situation, James Van Der Beek instead used the second half of his admission to address the traumas and rampant unrest that have shaken the country up in recent months. Though his comments were purposefully vague in that respect, his point about taking better care of each other is one that just about everyone could take to heart.

Check out James Van Der Beek's post below.

We at CinemaBlend send our condolences to James and Kimberly Van Der Beek during this trying time.

Spoilers ahead for the Season 28 semifinals of Dancing with the Stars**.**

No one expected the Dancing with the Stars Season 28 semifinals to make everyone cry with an elimination, but that’s exactly what happened. While stuck in the bottom two alongside Ally Brooke and her partner Sasha Farber, Dawson's Creek vet James Van Der Beek and pro Emma Slater were eliminated. Like many viewers, Ally Brooke was shocked about the results and actually tried to give up her spot in the finals.

There wasn’t a dry eye left in the audience during the Dancing with the Stars semifinals and Ally Brooke may have cried the hardest out of everyone following James Van Der Beek’s elimination following his heartbreaking admission. So rattled by the judges’ decisions — and even the fact that Van Der Beek was in the bottom two at all — Brooke pleaded with the judges and host Tom Bergeron to have the Dawson’s Creek actor take her spot in the finals.

Here’s what Ally Brooke had to say about the reasons for her visceral reaction:

It’s completely understandable that Ally Brooke realized the unfairness of it all. Brooke, though a consistently strong dancer, was no stranger to being in the bottom two. Having landed there three times already, she was more shocked by being pitted against James Van Der Beek.

Earlier in the Dancing with the Stars semifinals, the audience learned that Van Der Beek’s wife had suffered a recent miscarriage. It helped to explain the missteps in his first dance, but fans still hoped that the judges, knowing how strong of a dancer he was, would choose him to move onto the finals.

Speaking with ET, Ally Brooke continues, discussing her heartbreak over the situation.

While this isn’t the first heartbreaking elimination for Dancing with the Stars, the tragic circumstances certainly lent themselves to the tearful reactions from the judges, who’ve shared their disappointment with Season 28, and the audience. And to think that fans were already complaining about the unfairness of the new voting rules not that long ago! Although James Van Der Beek won’t be in the finals, Ally Brooke's heart was in the right place.

Stay tuned for the Dancing with the Stars finals, which will air next Monday, November 25 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

Spoilers ahead for the November 18 episode of Dancing with the Stars Season 28.

The November 18 semi-finals episode of Dancing with the Stars was the most serious of Season 28 so far, and not just because Sean Spicer's elimination meant that the remaining couples were actually super talented dancers. The five celebs and their partners were strutting their stuff, but the details dropped between dances are what made the episode hard to watch, and the eventual elimination was heartbreaking, to the dismay of fans everywhere. James Van Der Beek was voted out in a twist that was shocking for more than one reason.

The episode, which had already seen Kel Mitchell share the poignant story of a childhood friend he lost to gun violence and Hannah Brown on the verge of an emotional breakdown after everything she went through over the past year, took an even more tragic twist when James Van Der Beek tearfully revealed before his contemporary dance of the night that his wife had suffered a miscarriage. She was in the hospital, and he was only able to dance because she said she wanted to see him at it again.

The uncharacteristic mistakes in his first dance of the night began to make a whole lot more sense, considering he had been one of the most consistently solid celebrity dancers of the season, and there was not a dry eye in the DWTS house (or mine) after his contemporary to Hozier's "Take Me To Church." Surely there was no way James Van Der Beek would be voted out, right?

That was not the case. With only five couples left, it was quickly revealed the James Van Der Beek and partner Emma Slater were up against singer Ally Brooke and partner Sasha Farber in the bottom two. Carrie Ann Inaba was crying when she finally voted to keep Brooke, and Bruno Tonioli didn't look any happier when he made the same vote, guaranteeing that Brooke was moving on and Van Der Beek was out.

Ally Brooke was the one to break down into sobs, begging host Tom Bergeron and the judges to let her give a vote to James Van Der Beek. She couldn't stop crying, the celebs and dancers were crying when they came out to hug Van Der Beek and Slater, audience members were crying. Pretty much everybody was crying, and certainly some of us were shocked. I for one was not expecting James Van Der Beek to wind up in the bottom two this week at all, let alone be sent home by the judges.

I wasn't the only one feeling some kind of way after seeing James Van Der Beek eliminated, as proven by fan reactions on social media. Take a look!

One person on social media chose a screenshot of one of DWTS' crop of Season 28 dancers, as Hannah Brown of The Bachelorette fame did make a pretty meme-able face during the episode. Hannah's expression seems to show confusion, sadness, and even some anger, and I'm sure a lot of people felt that way about James Van Der Beek being sent home, especially since Len Goodman revealed he would have voted him off if he'd had to break a tie.

Another person on Twitter pointed out that even if James Van Der Beek wasn't at his best in this particular episode, the other dancer in the bottom two had been in that position several times already:

There's no denying that James Van Der Beek emerged as a serious contender early on based on his performances on the dance floor, whereas Ally Brooke was in and out of the bottom two. It seemed likely that Van Der Beek would be saved by the judges, even if he didn't get the votes from viewers at home.

That the judges went for Ally Brooke instead has left some people seriously upset:

James Van Der Beek was not only dealing with an awful situation in his family, but he was also sent home by the judges. The crying Anthony Anderson gif is pretty fitting, I'd say!

Somebody else on social media seemed to move past grief and jump right to resignation:

And this in the season that had many convinced that the voting from home wasn't fair! Will the elimination of James Van Der Beek be something that viewers can shake off in time to enjoy Ally Brooke and the rest in the finale?

We won't find that out until next week, but another person on Twitter didn't want to see Ally Brooke receiving any hate personally because the judges put her through rather than James Van Der Beek:

Love her, hate her, or tolerate her, Ally Brooke's reaction to moving on rather than James Van Der Beek was truly touching. She wanted to give him her points and her place to stay in the competition, and had to be kindly told she couldn't by the host and Van Der Beek himself. After this episode, I honestly hope everybody in the Dancing with the Stars production was able to sit down, drink some water, and recover. I was emotionally exhausted, and I was just watching from home!

Dancing With The Stars Judges Share ‘The Biggest Disappointment’ Of Season 28 And More

The Dancing with the Stars finale kicks off on Monday, November 25 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC with Lauren Alaina and Gleb Savchenko, Hannah Brown and Alan Bersten, Kel Mitchell and Witney Carson, and Ally Brooke and Sasha Farber in the running for the Season 28 mirrorball trophy.

Dawson's Creek has a legacy in pop culture that has fans wondering about the possibility of a revival with the original cast on board, even 20 years after it first hit the airwaves back in 1998. It also has a legacy for a very different reason: The Dawson Leery Cry-Face. In an episode that saw Dawson go on an emotional ride, James Van Der Beek's face crumpled into a cry that would be turned into a popular meme years later. By this point, it's safe to say that more people recognize James Van Der Beek from the meme than from Dawson's Creek. Well, Van Der Beek's Dawson's Creek co-star Joshua Jackson has offered up a challenge to The Dawson Leery Cry-Face, and it's pretty epic. Take a look!

Joshua Jackson has officially upped the cry-face ante! If you'd asked me only a few days ago if it was at all possible for a member of the Dawson's Creek cast to pull a face that could possibly eclipse The Dawson Leery Cry-Face, I wouldn't have believed it. Most of the members of the Dawson's Creek cast shed plenty of tears over the years on the teen drama, and Pacey certainly didn't have the stiffest of upper lips. Never once did Pacey's cry-face come close to resembling Dawson's. Did Joshua Jackson just need 18 years or so to perfect what James Van Der Beek pulled off back in 2000?

At least Joshua Jackson's cry-face had nothing to do with Joey Potter and the bizarre teen love triangle between Pacey, Joey, and Dawson during the early years of Dawson's Creek. That said, Jackson's post makes me want to see an ugly-cry entry from Katie Holmes. We're probably not going to get that Dawson's Creek revival that so many may be looking for; why not an ugly cry-face competition via social media?

James Van Der Beek responded with "Bring It" comment on Joshua Jackson's Instagram post, so we can have fun imagining what might happen next. If we can't get a three-way cry-off between Jackson, Van Der Beek, and Katie Holmes to see which Dawson's Creek love triangle alum deserves the top prize for best ugly cry face, why not a web video or sketch of Jackson and Van Der Beek going head-to-head with their tears?

Then again, there's still one full season of The Affair to go before it ends on Showtime. Maybe James Van Der Beek could appear as a rival love interest to Joshua Jackson's character. Pacey came out on top of the Dawson's Creek love triangle; maybe James Van Der Beek could tackle a role that puts him on top in a sticky romantic storyline. Is this likely? Not even a little bit. But it's fun to imagine the possibilities in a a world in which two 90s teen heartthrobs are joking about their cry-faces on social media in 2018.

If you want to relive the glory days of Dawson's Creek, you can find the full series streaming on both Hulu and Amazon Prime. For Joshua Jackson's more current work, you can catch the Season 4 finale of The Affair on August 19 at 9 p.m. ET on Showtime. For more of what you can watch in the not-too-distant future, take a peek at our fall TV premiere guide.

FX's new drama Pose spends a lot of time on focusing on the ballroom culture in 1987 Harlem, but there's also a portion of the story dedicated to our nation's current President. Specifically, two of the show's characters, Evan Peters' Stan Bowes and James Van Der Beek's Matt Bromley, are big-time businessmen hard at work within Trump Tower. That wasn't how it always was set up, however, as co-creator Ryan Murphy revealed Van Der Beek wasn't just going to be a boss in Trump Tower, but the building's biggest boss, as he was originally meant to play a young Donald Trump.

Ryan Murphy and co-creator Brad Falchuk decided to pull Donald Trump out of Pose as a main character to prevent taking audiences out of the events of the show. It would have been easier to bring Trump in as a character had he not won the 2016 election, but with him leading the country and inspiring real-world headline after headline, Pose's creative team soundly chose to go with an alternate idea.

Still, even without James Van Der Beek's performance tied to Trump, our nation's President still gets referenced quite a bit. Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk felt that tethering Donald Trump to the show's background fabric touched on the important theme in Pose of being yourself, so they created two new characters to represent this idea and still naturally bring Trump without him actually being needed onscreen. The end result perhaps isn't as exciting as Van Der Beek joining the ranks of various Trump impersonators and portrayers, but it's still appropriate, given how it may have distracted audiences from the main story.

Unfortunately, the world is left to wonder what could have been had Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk tested out the Trump angle with James Van Der Beek. Falchuk did tell EW he initially got to write a lot of dialogue in the voice of the President though, and was quite confident with his efforts.

James Van Der Beek indeed still got his Trump connection in Pose, however, since his character Matt Bromley is shown to be Donald Trump's right-hand man. Van Der Beek had confirmed prior to this that there will be no actual Trump appearance in the series, and that the show decided to keep him off-camera. The actor also said he has met the current President in person at an Oscar party, and said Trump acted like he recognized him, though Van Der Beek didn't seem entirely convinced. It would be funny to hear Trump saying he was a fan of Dawson's Creek, regardless of if he was or wasn't.

Pose airs on FX on Sundays at 9:00 p.m. ET. For a look at some other television shows coming in the next couple of months be sure to visit our summer premiere guide.

Television nowadays is in an era of reboots, remakes, and revivals, and few shows seem to be entirely off-limits as candidates for returns to the small screen. Dawson's Creek recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of its premiere on The WB way back in 1998, which naturally led fans to wonder if a trip back to Capeside to check back in with Dawson and Co. could be in the cards. Members of the cast and the creator weighed in on a potential revival, and fans may have mixed feelings about what they had to say. Here's how creator Greg Berlanti feels about a Dawson's Creek revival:

The show was a way for Greg Bertlanti to express himself back in the late 1990s, and his life has evidently changed to the point that he couldn't channel the same emotional connection for a Dawson's Creek revival. He certainly has no shortage of other projects to work on as well, so it's not like he's lacking in jobs these days. Interestingly, Berlanti is totally fine with somebody else taking over the show for a revival, if it got the green light. Not all creators of hit shows might be willing to pass the torch to another producer, but Berlanti is apparently so cool with the prospect that he'd watch the revival. Good for him!

James Van Der Beek, who played Dawson himself, has thoughts about a potential revival as well:

All things considered, it's difficult to imagine a Dawson's Creek revival that didn't reinvent the premise. James Van Der Beek--who has had some less-than-complimentary reactions and comments about the show--evidently doesn't believe that Dawson's Creek could come back without some major changes, which is understandable. As much as nostalgic fans might want to see Joey climbing through Dawson's bedroom window again, it might not make much sense for them as adults. These are characters who may be married with kids at this point! Well, except for poor Jen, but it would be fun to see how Jack has fared raising her child.

Another star doesn't sound like she'd even consider a Dawson's Creek revival. Katie Holmes had this to say in the chat with EW about returning to Capeside:

Katie Holmes hasn't changed her tune about a potential revival since she first addressed the question back in February 2016. She evidently believes that the past is best left in the past when it comes to Dawson's Creek, and it wouldn't work in 2018 the way it worked in 1998. While some stars are definitely on board to reprise their roles, Katie Holmes isn't one of them. At least we got Holmes and the rest of the cast back together for an adorable reunion photo!

If you now feel the need to relive Dawson and Co.'s time on the small screen, the full series is available streaming on Hulu. Don't forget to swing by our midseason TV premiere guide and our summer premiere schedule. For a look at the shows that have already had their fates decided this season, check out our rundown of TV cancellations and renewals.

Dawson's Creek was once one of the biggest shows for young adults, and fans are still passionate to this day about whether Pacey or Dawson was a better match for Joey. In fact, it's difficult to believe that the show premiered way back in 1998 and the young actors who tackled the four lead roles are now accomplished performers with many roles to their names. James Van Der Beek, Katie Holmes, Joshua Jackson, and Michelle Williams reunited for Dawson's Creek's 20th anniversary. Take a look at the pic!

Something tells me Joey/Pacey fans will be happy with this reunion photo! Katie Holmes has her hands on Joshua Jackson's shoulders in a pose that could almost pass for a photo of Joey and Pacey, 15 years after the finale ended with the two poised to enjoy a happily-ever-after. The response to the pic (posted on EW's Twitter) might have been quite negative among those fans if James Van Der Beek had been touching one or both of them. That love triangle may be best left in the past. For her part, Michelle Williams looks lovely as always as she stands over the other three.

Now that TV is in an era of reboots, remakes, and revivals, this reunion of the four key Dawson's Creek players will undoubtedly have fans wondering if they could comeback for another batch of episodes together. Revivals -- such as Will and Grace and the newly-premiered Roseanne -- have turned in huge ratings and given the actors more exposure. That said, the actors are more or less doing pretty well for themselves without tackling their Dawson's Creek roles again, and Katie Holmes has already said that she doesn't think Dawson's Creek could work again for a fairly understandable reason.

Some members of the cast have spoken about a willingness to return for a revival, however, so who knows? Maybe something could happen to bring them all together again, even if not for a full batch of episodes. Surely fans would tune in for a reunion special on the small screen. Even the busiest members of the cast might be able to get together for a special running an hour or two rather than a full season. We'll have to wait and see. Dawson's Creek does still have an impact on current shows, so we can be positive that its legacy lives on.

If you're now in the mood for a blast from the Dawson's Creek past, you can find the full series of 128 episodes streaming on Hulu. For your viewing options now and in the coming months, be sure to take a look at our midseason TV premiere schedule and our summer TV premiere guide. For the shows that have already gotten the axe from the 2017-2018 season, check out our rundown of TV cancellations and renewals.

Warning: Major spoilers ahead for the pilot episode of Sea Oak. Feel free to head over to one of our other lovely articles if you haven't watched it yet!

Amazon's pilot season is, once again, upon us, and Glenn Close's potential new show, Sea Oak is a wild ride that definitely deserves a look. And, if you've ever wanted to watch the six time Academy Award nominee in a fit of undead rage, you're in luck. Of course, things don't start out quite that exciting for Close's character, Aunt Bernie. So, let's dig into what drove this sweet woman to, well, come back to (sorta) life.

In Sea Oak, which is named after the "dangerous crap hole" of an apartment complex that Aunt Bernie lives in with her nephew Cole (Jack Quaid), nieces Min (Jane Levy) and Jade (Rae Gray), and the infant of each niece, Close plays a lonely older woman for whom it's pretty clear that life didn't turn out that well. The episode starts with Bernie at confession because, as she tells the priest, she has "bad thoughts" about her shiftless young nieces who each have a child without being in committed relationships and seemingly refuse to work or contribute to the household in any real way. She tells the priest she just "wants things to be nice" and when he asks if they are, she says yes, even though Bernie is clearly lying about that.

And, because this isn't sad enough already, as Bernie leave church she somehow loses her footing and falls down the steps. She struggles to get up as her no good nieces sit in the car unaware of her predicament because they're arguing over answers to GED test questions. When Cole is finally notified of Bernie's fall while at his sketchy job as a peep show Egyptian pharaoh working for Mr. Frendt (James Van Der Beek), he picks her up to take her into work so she can explain her injury and take a sick day. Unfortunately, while waiting outside her boss' office at the drab-as-all-hell 99 cent store where she works, Bernie overhears him tell another employee that they'll be getting her cashier job while Bernie will be knocked down to greeter because she's "too nervous."

Bernie is clearly upset by the news, but she pushes down the feelings (like she's probably done pretty much every time she's been hurt in her life) and has Cole take her home. There's not much respite there, either, and while the family is trying to watch TV and have dinner shots ring out in their apartment complex, and Cole has to cover Bernie since she won't leave her favorite chair. The next day, Cole heads back to work, while Min and Jade take the kids to the mall, so Bernie can enjoy her off day. When they get back, however, the apartment has been ransacked and poor Bernie has died of a heart attack from the stress of a home invasion.

All of that is to say, Bernie's life was pretty shitty and it ended shitty, too. Except, of course, that this isn't where Sea Oak ends. This, my friends, is when the show kicks things into high gear, and the series that was about a nice, put-upon, lonely old woman who thought of her lazy nieces and relatively nice nephew as her own children turns into an insane story about a dead woman who decides that now's as good a time as any to have the life she always wanted.

You see, the night of Bernie's funeral, which was only attended by eight people (including the priest), Cole gets a call that there's a problem with her burial plot. When the family heads over there, they realize that the problem is that Bernie's grave and casket have been busted apart and she's gone (with the exception of one red shoe). And, because this show is batshit in the best way, when Cole gets home from work the next day he finds their door smashed in. Inside, he finds Jade and Min sitting stiffly on the couch and eyeballing him with terror. The reason, of course, is that undead Bernie is back and sitting in her favorite chair. And she's really, really angry.

It would seem that Bernie's rebirth is fueled by all the hurt and anger she's stuffed down over the years, and the woman is now in no mood to be trifled with. Bernie makes it clear to her family that she is now calling the shots because she never got to do anything in life and she's not going to allow her death to be the same. She tells Cole that the next time a woman offers him extra money to get naked during his peep-show duties he better take it, and tells her nieces they will start cooking because Bernie needs to look her best. Their undead aunt would like to finally get laid, you see, since the poor woman died a virgin. As Bernie says, in life she had "no babies and no lovers. Nothing went in and nothing came out."

This version of Aunt Bernie is, understandably, a huge and many-tiered shock for Cole, Min and Jade, but Bernie warns them not to tell anyone that she's back, saying that she'll kill them if they say a word and kill anyone they tell because she's "very freakin' strong now!" as she magically throws a lamp across the room with her mind. Bernie's determined to fix everything, including the three "stupid fuckers" who live with her, and by the end of the episode it's clear that some big changes are a-comin'.

Sea Oak promises to be a mighty wild ride as Bernie finally whips her family into shape and tries to get some of the happiness that alluded her in life, and I'm sure it won't be easy. Whatever Cole, Jude and Min do, at least they know now that calling Bernie a zombie will get them knocked upside the head with the nearest object before they have time to duck.

You can watch Sea Oak now on Amazon, and vote for it to become a full series right here.

For five seasons, Tatiana Maslany was one of the most watchable people on TV, as she took on a variety of different roles for the sci-fi thriller Orphan Black. Perhaps unfortunately, she'll only be playing a single role in her next big TV project, but we're still celebrating, because she was cast in Ryan Murphy next FX drama, the recently announced Pose. What's more, she's got a lot of other talented entertainers around her, such as Murphy regular Evan Peters and more.

Pose will take place in New York City in the 1980s, with the rapid rise of financial excess and luxury mixed in with separate looks at different social settings of the era, such as literary circles and the ballroom scene. In the show, Tatiana Maslany will play a modern dance teacher who appears to have more than just a professional interest in the talented Damon, played by Ryan Jamaal Swain. I'm already getting hints of Black Swan, even though this show probably won't be anything like that.

But it does sound like Maslany's dancing scenes will be taken as seriously as possible, as Pose is bringing in acclaimed choreographer Ryan Heffington, perhaps most famous for choreographing several music videos for Sia (including the Grammy-nominated "Chandelier") and Arcade Fire. His work was also showcased on the Netflix sci-fi drama The OA and in Edgar Wright's latest flick Baby Driver, so here's hoping we get to see both grace and intensity when Maslany and Swain are on the screen.

Evan Peters, currently starring in American Horror Story: Cult, will reteam with another AHS vet, Kate Mara, to play Stan and Patty, a New Jersey couple who find themselves getting pulled into the glitzy and enthralling changes making New York City all the more glamourous. Meanwhile, Dawson's Creek vet James Van Der Beek has also been added to Pose as Matt, a money-loving kingpin that employs Peters' Stan. Sometimes tells me Van Der Beek will be playing one of his skeeviest characters yet, and it will be kinda hard to top his role in The Rules of Attraction.

Notably, Pose's cast will also include the largest number of transgender actors to take on series regular roles in a scripted series. And stage star Billy Porter, who won a Tony Award for his work on Kinky Boots, is also part of the cast.

In the years since Orphan Black premiered back in 2013, Tatiana Maslany has become a fan favorite actress, appearing in shows such as Parks and Recreation, BoJack Horseman and Robot Chicken, among others. She's also starred in a few smaller dramas like last year's The Other Half, and just recently starred oppose Jake Gyllenhaal in the Boston marathon bombing drama Stronger. Pose will likely be her biggest TV role to date, so it'll be interesting to see if she gets any Emmy attention right away instead of having to wait years for it.

Pose, co-created by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Steven Canals, will go into production in November in New York, presumably for a 2018 premiere on FX. While waiting to hear more about the drama, head to our fall TV premiere schedule.

James Van Der Beek doesn't have many opinions about Dawson's Creek these days, but he did recently give an answer as to when he believed the show went off the rails. Van Der Beek shared his answer on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen when Andy asked him when he believes the show officially jumped the shark:

While it seems Andy Cohen was using the term "jumped the shark" to mean Dawson's Creek stretching the boundaries of realism, the official definition is when a show does something so outrageous that it becomes clear they've run out of ideas. Those who know it from that definition might think this is a cold hearted diss, but it could be that Van Der Beek understood Cohen's context in the question or he may just not know much more about the show beyond Season 2. Given his statements in the past and the fact that Joey actually wore the wire to frame her dad and not Dawson, the latter wouldn't be all that surprising.

Earlier in the year James Van Der Beek appeared on a U.K. daytime talk show and was blasted with questions regarding Dawson's Creek despite being there to promote another show. Van Der Beek mentioned there that he had not watched the series all the way through so he only remembers the scripts and what they shot. Considering television shows aren't shot scene by scene and have lots of unused footage it's understandable his response and accuracy in answering the question on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen is a bit spotty.

Even so, it's pretty hilarious to hear James Van Der Beek might think Dawson's Creek ran out of ideas in Season 2 when they went well beyond that. Certainly, there are enough fans who feel differently, otherwise that gay porno Van Der Beek got caught with would've never been made to begin with. Unfortunately, the juice on Dawson's Creek__ practically ended there as Van Der Beek wouldn't even tell Cohen in their interview whether Katie Holmes or Michelle Williams was a better kisser.

Dawson's Creek is no more but can be found on Hulu, and Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen airs Sundays through Thursdays at 11 p.m. ET on Bravo. Those more concerned with the here and now can visit our summer premiere guide to find start dates for all the hottest shows or even look ahead at our fall premiere guide to prep their cold-weather watching schedule.

While the world has been transfixed on the fact that it's been 20 years since Buffy The Vampire Slayer first aired, let's not forget another 20th anniversary of a popular 90s show is rapidly approaching. Next January will mark two decades since the beginning of Dawson's Creek, and while the cast will probably be excited to talk about the glory days at that point, maybe it's best not to blindside James Van Der Beek with questions when he's promoting a completely different project. These two U.K. daytime talk show hosts did, and it was a trainwreck:

Just in case you were spent less time listening and more time watching James Van Der Beek's internal-screaming faces, This Morning hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield spent just under half of their five-minute interview discussing Dawson's Creek. That likely threw James for a loop considering he came on the show to promote his upcoming family comedy Carters Get Rich, which will be airing on U.K.'s Sky 1 network March 30th. You wouldn't know that was the focus, though, considering the entire crew went straight up fanboy on Van Der Beek, and was apparently blasting Paula Cole backstage before the segment started. It's definitely not the best way to start off an interview.

It's also a little tacky to do that kind of thing without any forewarning, as evidenced repeatedly by James Van Der Beek's awkward smiles. Past projects and stuff of that nature are always going to come up, but as a professional courtesy, perhaps everyone should have checked before crafting those then-and-now graphics and downloading the Dawson's soundtrack on Spotify. Had This Morning even led with a coy joke and moved on, I think they would've been safe, but they lingered all too long.

It also kind of doesn't make sense, as host Phillip Schofield points out in the video that James Van Der Beek never watched Dawson's Creek all the way through. With so many takes, cuts, and scenes shot out of sequence during filming, I'm sure Van Der Beek isn't familiar with a lot of the series outside of Dawson Leery, so his limited context doesn't work so well for their questions. There are probably a few people reading this that would be able to give a better interview than he can without any prep time.

While he was uncomfortable, I don't think that necessarily means that James Van Der Beek doesn't like Dawson's Creek. Actors and actresses not wishing to watch themselves on screen are common, and you'd be surprised at the list of people who haven't seen the shows that made them famous. Maybe this encounter will lead Van Der Beek to binge all six seasons of the series before the 20th anniversary in January, so he'll be more prepared for moments like these in the future.

He might also just continue to let the past be the past and check out our midseason premiere guide and summer premiere schedule so that he can dive into new shows and further escape Dawson Creek's shadow.

James Van Der Beek has been in the acting world for long enough that he has plenty of memorable roles attached to his name. However, despite his appearance in the recent Power/Rangers short, he’s probably still most known for starring in the WB drama Dawson’s Creek, where he played Dawson Leery. The show was so popular, it even got a porn parody, and James Van Der Beek recently told the story of how he was caught red-handed with a copy of the porno.

Van Der Beek was recently speaking out about the Power/Rangers short and how incredibly different it was from the original Power Rangers material, which led him to reminisce with Vulture about the differences in Dawson’s Creek and Dawson’s Crack. I’m sure that airport security has seen its fair share of wild stuff in suitcases before, but to see the star of Dawson’s Creek nonchalantly carrying around the porn parody of his own TV series must have been a particularly amusing moment in that airport security team’s life.

The good news is that VHS tapes of porn are hardly contraband, and Van Der Beek seems to have gotten out of the situation with his dignity intact. It’s just too bad that in the early 2000s Woodrockets wasn’t around to create a porn parody of the then-hit TV drama. We’ve seen what they’ve done with the likes of Parks and Rec and Bob’s Burgers. No doubt they would crushed this one.

The actor has moved on since the days on Dawson’s Creek. As a young man, he landed roles in flicks like Varsity Blues, and more recently here’s starred in shows like Don’t Trust The B---- and the upcoming CSI: Cyber. In short, he’s an on-demand actor, but it’s nice to see he’s willing to joke around and reminisce about his glorious history as a melodramatic teen icon.

Kimberly is no longer the damsel in distress we knew her in the original Power Rangers. She’s all grown up, and she’s had to get a lot tougher as the world fell into chaos. Yes, she’s still somehow the one who gets captured, but it’s bloody brilliant (with emphasis on the bloody). Longtime music video director Joseph Kahn has been working on an R-rated Power Rangers short film that shows what happens to our beloved "teenagers with attitude" after the glam of the TV series has worn off. Long story short: things get real.Keep in mind the video is NSFW

Kahn has directed a ton of music videos for the likes of Taylor Swift, Britney Spears and 50 Cent. But his Deboot of the Power Rangers is what we’d imagine the Rangers would look like if, say, Quentin Tarantino wrapped his sadistic mind around the property. According to Kahn, he made this his "take on the fan film," but he spared no expense.

We open with the Rangers charging, machine guns blazing, towards a battle between a Megazord and an alien monster. It’s a dark, dank war zone, and the film will cut back to this moment a few times over the course of its 15-minute run. This is no longer the world we once knew it to be. After the battles with Rita Repulsa, Machine-like aliens have been waging a war against Earth, which has basically turned into Blade Runner. Yes, that is indeed Katee Sackhoff playing Kimberly. Although she’s being held prisoner, it’s by one of her old allies. Rocky (played by James Van Der Beek), the guy who came in to replace Jason as the Red Ranger, has now switched sides to the machines and is interrogating Kim for the whereabouts of Tommy Oliver (Russ Bain), aka the Green Ranger. By the looks of it, Rocky has taken some heavy damage over the years, as he now lugs around a robotic leg.

In a scenario on par with something out of Watchmen, someone (or something) is killing off the Rangers. It seems Trini was a casualty of war, but Zack (Gichi Gamba) was shot in the back of the head in his own home, Billy apparently shot himself in the head, Jason was gunned down eight hours after he married Kim, and Tommy became a wandering Ronin. Are Rocky and the machines behind it? Will Kim meet the same fate? Or will Tommy come and save her…like always? But there’s always a twist!

Everyone talks about making that dark and gritty take on Power Rangers but Kahn has actually done it! He’s been working on this for a while now and started filming shortly after Comic-Con. As he told HitFix,

Lionsgate is working on a new Power Rangers reboot, which is said to be a reimagining of the property, but we’ll take Kahn’s Deboot any day. All we want now is for him to launch a Kickstarter campaign so he can turn this into a feature-length film.

Surprisingly, we haven't seen a whole lot of Kevin Connolly since Entourage wrapped up a couple of years back. But that may be changing, should things go well for the comedy pilot James van der Beek is starring in. Connolly is tapped to join the Don't Trust the B---- In Apt 23 star in the CBS project, and like van der Beek, he'll also be playing a gynecologist.

The multi-camera comedy comes from Friends writer Dana Klein, and follows a group of 30-somethings who think each other has it better. When we learned of van der Beek's casting, we knew that he was one of two gynecologists featured in the potential series, titled Friends with Better Lives. This week, EW reports that Connolly has been cast to play the role of Bobby Lutz, the other gynecologist and best friend to van der Beek's character. He joins Brooklyn Decker and Rick Donald in the pilot.

Connolly was attached to a project with the same title last fall, which was being executive produced by Rob Long.

Connolly's probably best known for his role as Eric, the more responsible of the foursome of friends in Entourage, but his credits go all the way back to a role in Rocky V. Later in the 90s, he starred in Unhappily Ever After. And then, during his Entourage years, he appeared in a number of features, including The Notebook and He's Just Not That Into You. Since the HBO comedy wrapped up, we haven't seen much of him, though he did appear in Sebastian Gutierrez' crime drama Hotel Noir, and his voice can be heard in some of the Best Buy commercials. So we may be seeing him back on the small screen soon enough.

James Van Der Beek will forever be Dawson. While the actor has had notable roles since and has actually been working fairly constantly, no matter where he goes he will always be remembered as that guy from Dawson's Creek. But hey, he's a success, right? He even just landed a role in a television series, Don't Trust The B- In Apartment 23 where he's playing himself. Even better than that? Jason Reitman has found a space for him in his new project.

THR has learned that Van Der Beek is now in talks for a part in Labor Day. Already set to star Josh Brolin and Kate Winslet, the movie is about a young boy who gets a ride from a mysterious stranger over the Labor Day weekend. It turns out that the stranger is actually a escaped convict who "ends up teaching the boy life lessons." Winslet is set to play the boy's mother, who is described as a recluse, while Brolin will play the mystery man. Should he make a deal, Van Der Beek will play a cop who is on the hunt for a missing person.

But who will play the young boy? The same trade has that information in another article. Gattlin Griffith, 13, has been selected by Reitman to play the film's main character. Despite being so young, Griffith actually has a fairly extensive resume, having appeared in multiple television series and playing roles in movies like Clint Eastwood's Changeling and Martin Campbell's Green Latnern. While Griffith is the director's top choice, he has not yet signed on the dotted line.

Labor Day is based on the novel by Joyce Maynard and was adapted by Jason Reitman. The film is currently in pre-production and doesn't yet have a release date.