James Van Der Beek, of 'Dawson's Creek' fame, has died at 48 of colorectal cancer

James Van Der Beek, best known as Dawson on TV's "Dawson's Creek" who later mocked his own hunky persona, has died at 48 of colorectal cancer.

His family posted that news Wednesday on Instagram, saying he died earlier the same day.

“He met his final days with courage, faith, and grace,” his family said in the post.

Van Der Beek had gone public in 2024 that he was being treated for the disease that increasingly is hitting younger adults and also caused the death of another young actor, Chadwick Boseman.

Beside starring in “Dawson’s Creek,” Van Der Beek's other acting roles including starring in the movie “Varsity Blues.”

Van Der Beek made a surprise video appearance in September at a “Dawson’s Creek” reunion charity event in New York City after previously dropping out due to illness.
He appeared projected onstage at the Richard Rodgers Theatre during a live reading of the show’s pilot episode to benefit F Cancer and Van Der Beek. Lin-Manuel Miranda subbed for him on stage. “Thank you to every single person here,” Van Der Beek said.

A onetime theater kid, Van Der Beek also starred on TV in “CSI: Cyber” as FBI Special Agent Elijah Mundo, but he was forever connected to “Dawson’s Creek,” which ran from 1998 to 2003 on The WB.

The series followed a high school group of friends as they fell in and out of love, formed friendships and ound their footing in life. Van Der Beek, than 20, played 15-year-old Dawson Leery, who aspired to be a director of Steven Spielberg quality.

“Dawson’s Creek,” with Paula Cole’s “I Don’t Want To Wait” as its moody theme song, helped define The WB as a haven for teenagers and young adults who related to its hyperarticulate dialogue and frank talk about sexuality. It made household names of Van Der Beek, Joshua Jackson, Katie Holmes and Michelle Williams.

The show caused a stir when Jackson's character embarked on a racy affair with a teacher 20 years his senior and when Holmes’ character would climb through Dawson’s bedroom window and curl up together in bed with him. Racier shows like “Euphoria” and “Sex Education” owe a debt to “Dawson’s Creek.”

Van Der Beek sometimes struggled to get out from under the shadow of the show but eventually leaned into lampooning himself, like on Funny Or Die videos and on Kesha’s “Blow” music video, which included his laser-gun battle with the pop star in a nightclub and dead unicorns.

“It’s tough to compete with something that was the cultural phenomenon that ‘Dawson’s Creek’ was,” he said in an interview with Vulture in 2013. “It ran for so long. That’s a lot of hours playing one character in front of people. So it’s natural that they associate you with that.”

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