James Van Der Beek arrives at the 71st Primetime Emmy Awards in Los Angeles on September 22, 2019. RICHARD SHOTWELL / RICHARD SHOTWELL/INVISION/AP
US actor James Van Der Beek, the star of the American TV series Dawson's Creek, died on Wednesday, February 11, at age 48 after a battle with colorectal cancer.
"Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning. He met his final days with courage, faith and grace," read a post on his Instagram page.
Van Der Beek, who was married and had six children, announced his cancer diagnosis in 2024. He was best known for playing Dawson, the lead character of the eponymous 1998-2003 teen drama that followed a group of friends living in a small Massachusetts town.
While he also had roles in the films Varsity Blues and The Rules of Attraction, Van Der Beek never truly established himself in cinema as he struggled to separate himself from the legacy of Dawson's Creek.
