James Van Der Beek has sadly died at the age of 48 after a years-long battle with cancer. The actor, best known for playing Dawson Leery in Dawson’s Creek, had previously revealed he was battling colorectal cancer in late 2024. TMZ reported that a representative for the Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office said his death was reported at 6:44 AM. No cause of death has been given at this time. The actor, best known for playing Dawson Leery in Dawson’s Creek, had previously revealed he was battling colorectal cancer in late 2024.
Van Der Beek, 48, had been due to reunite with his former co-stars in September but was forced to withdraw from the planned Dawson’s Creek reunion as his health declined. His diagnosis had stunned fans when he went public with the news last year, sharing that he was undergoing treatment while continuing to focus on time with his family. Further details surrounding his death have not yet been released.
The actor’s family confirmed his passing 14 months after he first went public with his stage 3 colorectal cancer diagnosis.
On Wednesday, his wife Kimberly Van Der Beek shared the devastating news on Instagram alongside a headshot of the former teen heartthrob.
She wrote: “Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning. “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.”
Alongside Kimberly, James is survived by their six children — Olivia, 14, Joshua, 12, Annabel, 10, Emilia, 8, Gwen, 6, and Jeremiah, 3.
Van Der Beek had spent his final years urging people to seek early screenings, using his own diagnosis to raise awareness.
He first revealed the news in an interview with People in November 2024, saying: “I have colorectal cancer. I’ve been privately dealing with this diagnosis and have been taking steps to resolve it, with the support of my incredible family.
“There’s reason for optimism, and I’m feeling good.” He explained that symptoms began in the summer of 2023.
“I thought maybe I needed to stop coffee. Or maybe not put cream in the coffee. But when I cut that out and it didn’t improve, I thought, ‘All right, I better get this checked out.’
“I felt really good coming out of anesthesia, that I’d finally done it. Then the gastroenterologist said — in his most pleasant bedside manner — that it was cancer. I think I went into shock.”
James later described his treatment journey in deeply personal terms. “This has been a crash course in the mastery of mind, body, and spirit. I thought, ‘This is either going to take me out of the body, or it’s going to teach me how to truly live in it.’
“The trickiest thing is there are so many unknowns with cancer. You think, ‘How do I fix this? Is this healing me? Is this hurting me? Is this working? Is it coming back?’ As someone who likes answers, not knowing is one of the hardest things.
“I have a lot to live for.”
Rising to fame in the late 1990s as Dawson Leery in Dawson’s Creek, James later appeared in Scary Movie, Varsity Blues and the series Pose — cementing his place as one of the era’s defining screen stars.
