Credit: James Van Der Beek, InstagramAlmost thirty years ago, a new show took the world by storm and became one of the most popular television shows of the 1990s. The show was Dawson’s Creek, and it revolved around a group of teenagers — Dawson, Joey, Pacey, and Jen — who lived in the fictional town of Capeside, Massachusetts. The show made audiences laugh, cry, and even groan, but it left an unforgettable impression.
Fans came to love and identify with the characters over six seasons, and the show covered everything from first love, death, coming out, homophobia, class differences, mental health, and divorce.
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Dawson’s Creek launched the careers of its stars and made them household names. James Van Der Beek starred as the titular Dawson, while Katie Holmes portrayed Joey (Dawson’s love interest), Joshua Jackson played Pacey (Dawson’s best friend), and Michelle Williams played Jen (the new girl).
In a tragic turn of events, James Van Der Beek recently revealed he was recently diagnosed with colorectal cancer. However, he is looking at everything from a positive point of view.
In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Van Der Beek spoke about his diagnosis and how he is dealing with it.
“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,” the star, 47, tells PEOPLE exclusively.
“There’s reason for optimism, and I’m feeling good,” Van Der Beek adds.
Unfortunately, the actor did not get to reveal his cancer diagnosis the way he wanted or on his timeline.
In a November 3 Instagram post, the actor revealed that he felt compelled to speak about it publicly when he learned the press had found out about his diagnosis and were going to report on it.
He apologized to his friends and family, who were forced to find out in the worst possible way.
“It is cancer…”
Each year, approximately 2 billion people around the world receive this diagnosis. And I’m one of them. There’s no playbook for how announce these things, but I’d planned on talking about it at length with People magazine at some point soon… to raise awareness and tell my story on my own terms. But that plan had to be altered early this morning when I was informed that a tabloid was going to run with the news.
I’ve been dealing with this privately until now, getting treatment and dialing in my overall health with greater focus than ever before. I’m in a good place and feeling strong. It’s been quite the initiation, and I’ll tell you more when I’m ready.
Apologies to all the people in my life who I’d planned on telling myself. Nothing about this process has occurred on my preferred timeline… But we roll with it, taking each surprise as a signpost, pointing us toward a greater destiny than we would have discovered without divine intervention.
Please know that my family and I deeply appreciate all the love and support.
More to come…
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Despite his diagnosis, Mr. Van Der Beek is not letting his cancer slow him down.
He recently appeared in the hit show Walker and will also star in Sidelined: The QB and Me, an original film from Tubi, which comes out on November 29. Then, in late December, he is set to star in the two-hour special, The Real Full Monty. Van Der Beek, along with other notable celebrities, will strip down to raise awareness for prostate, testicular, and colorectal cancer testing and research.
He is also living his best life with his wife, Kimberly, and their six children, Olivia, Joshua, Annabel, Emilia, Gwendolyn, and Jeremiah.
We wish James Van Der Beek well on his health journey and are glad to see him thriving with his family.