James Van Der Beek, best known for his starring role on the late-1990s teen drama, Dawson’s Creek, has died aged 48. The father-of-six previously revealed he had been diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer in late 2024.
According to TMZ, a spokesperson for the Travis County Medical Examiner’s office said the death was reported at 6:44 a.m. Wednesday, January 11.
A message shared on Van Der Beek’s official Instagram account the same day confirmed he had passed earlier that morning.
It read: “He met his final days with courage, faith, and grace, there is much to share regarding his wishes, love for humanity and the sacredness of time. Those days will come. For now we ask for peaceful privacy as we grieve our loving husband, father, son, brother, and friend.”
Tributes flow
Leaving a lasting impression on Hollywood, many celebrities including Chad Michael Murray, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and Busy Williams paid tribute to the late actor.
Busy Williams
The White Girls actress took to Instagram to share a picture of the late star alongside a heartfelt message: “My heart is deeply hurting for all of us today,” she began.”
“Every person who knew James and loved him, anyone who loved his work or had the pleasure of meeting him, all of his dear friends and community that surrounded him as he battled this illness, especially his parents and brother and sister. But I am profoundly heartbroken for his incredible wife Kimberly and their six magical children,” she continued.
Before adding that there was a GoFundMe me started to help out the family during this difficult time. “He was my friend and I loved him and I’m so grateful for our friendship all these years,” she concluded.
Inside James Van Der Beek’s family life
James and met his wife Kimberly first crossed paths on a trip to Israel in 2009, and they tied the knot a year later.
The couple went on to welcome six children together: daughters Olivia, Annabel, Emilia and Gwendolyn, and sons Joshua and Jeremiah.
Living with cancer
In March 2025, the actor took to Instagram to reflect on his past year, sharing a video titled “What Cancer Taught Me.”
“When I was younger, I used to define myself as an actor, which was never all that fulfilling, and then I became a husband and it was much better and then I became a father and that was the ultimate,” he said.
“I could define myself then as a loving, capable, strong, supportive husband, father, provider, steward of the land that we’re so lucky to live on. And for a long time, that felt like a really good definition to the question, ‘Who am I? What am I?’ And then this year, I had to look my own mortality in the eye.”
“I had to come nose to nose with death,” he continued. “And all of those definitions that I cared so deeply about were stripped from me.
“I was away for treatment, so I could no longer be a husband that was helpful to my wife.
“I could no longer be a father who could pick up his kids and put them to bed and be there for them.
“I could not be a provider because I wasn’t working.
“So I was faced with the question that if I was just here to be a too-skinny, weak guy, alone, in an apartment with cancer, what am I?” James reflected.
“I meditated and the answer came through. I am worthy of God’s love, simply because I exist. And if I’m worthy of God’s love, shouldn’t I be worthy of my own?”
Van Der Beek’s legacy
Despite stepping back from public appearances due to his illness, the actor made a huge impact on Hollywood throughout his career.
James made his professional debut at age 16 in a 1993 off-Broadway production in New York City. He was just 20 when he took on the highly-coveted role of Dawson Leery.
Dawson’s Creek helped launch the careers of Van Der Beek, Joshua Jackson, Katie Holmes and Michelle Williams, turning them into household names.
Despite his illness, the actor made a virtual cameo in September during a Dawson’s Creek reunion charity event in New York City. Though he had withdrawn from attending in person, he appeared via video projection at the Richard Rodgers Theatre during a live reading of the show’s pilot episode.
The event supported F Cancer and Van Der Beek, with Lin-Manuel Miranda filling in for him onstage. Addressing the crowd remotely, Van Der Beek said, ‘Thank you to every single person here.”
While he went on to roles in projects such as the football drama Varsity Blues and CSI: Cyber, Van Der Beek remained most closely identified with Dawson’s Creek.
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