James Van Der Beek's Wife Shares Heartbreaking Tribute After His Death
James Van Der Beek’s wife, Kimberley Van Der Beek, shared a heartbreaking tribute to him while announcing his death.
The 47-year-old actor died after a battle with stage 3 colorectal cancer.
“Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning,” Kimberly wrote in an Instagram post announcing the Dawson’s Creek actor’s death. “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.”
Van Der Beek shares six kids with Kimberly—daughters Olivia, Annabel, Emilia and Gwendolyn, and sons Joshua and Jeremiah. The actor and his wife married in 2010.
Van Der Beek announced his diagnosis in November 2024. “I’ve been privately dealing with this diagnosis and have been taking steps to resolve it, with the support of my incredible family,” his statement said.
“Telling people required a lot of energy,” he told People at the time. “I’m an empath. I like to take care of everybody. I’m a provider, and especially at that point, I was trying to be Superman and be all things to all people and be a dad and a provider. And so to have to tell people and my father and my siblings and my kids, it was really tricky.”
In September 2025, Van Der Beek’s health caused him to drop out of a Dawson’s Creek reunion event in which cast members including Katie Holmes and Joshua Jackson united to raise awareness for F Cancer and show support for their co-star, who played the titular character on the show.
However, in a December interview with Today’s Craig Melvin, Van Der Beek said his health had improved. “I feel much, much better than I did a couple months ago,” Van Der Beek said. “It’s been a longer journey than I ever thought it would be. It’s required more of me — more patience, more discipline, more strength than I knew I had. I knew I was strong — I didn’t know I was this strong. But I feel good.”
His family have asked for privacy at this time.