On Monday, September 22nd, the cast of 90s teen drama series Dawson’s Creek reunited—with one notable exception. James Van Der Beek, who starred as the titular Dawson Leery and was diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer in the summer of 2023, had to drop out of the event due to “two stomach viruses,” as he wrote in an Instagram post. “Despite every effort… I won’t get to be there,” he wrote. “I won’t get to stand on that stage and thank every soul in the theater for showing up for me, and against cancer, when I needed it most.”
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The reunion saw Lin Manuel Miranda step in for Van Der Beek, reading the pilot for the series with series stars Michelle Williams, Katie Holmes, Joshua Jackson, and Busy Phillips. The event was held at the Richard Rodgers Theatre—home of Hamilton—as a one night only charity event in partnership with F Cancer. (Williams is also married to Thomas Kail, who directed Hamilton.)
Although he wasn’t able to attend in person, Van Der Beek did make a surprise virtual appearance. Wearing a newsboy cap, a white t-shirt, and brown jacket, a visibly thinner Van Der Beek addressed the audience in a pre-recorded message. “I have been looking forward to this night for months and months ever since my angel Michelle Williams said she was putting it together,” began Van Der Beek. “I can’t believe I’m not there. I can’t believe I don’t get to see my castmates, my beautiful cast in person.”
Dawson‘s alum Jason Moore directed the event, which was produced by Williams, Moore, Carl Ogawa, Maggie Brohn, Kevin Williamson, Greg Berlanti, and Tony winner Kail.
“I want to stand on that stage and thank every single person in the theater for being here tonight,” Van Der Beek continued. “From the cast to the crew to everybody who’s doing anything and has been so generous, and especially every single last one of you—you are the best fans in the world.”
He went on to thank the attendees, calling the experience “humbling” before ending his video message by introducing Miranda. “Obviously, on Dawson’s Creek, I had no understudy. But this is Broadway, and I needed one. So we figured we’d try to find somebody who had never understudied in this theater before.”
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While Van Der Beek was recuperating in bed at his home in Austin, TX during the reunion, his wife Kimberly Van Der Beek and their six children Olivia, Joshua, Annabel, Emilia, Gwendolyn, and Jeremiah made it inside the Richard Rodgers theater. “Was important to him that we come,” wrote Kimberly on Instagram. Van Der Beek’s wife and kids even joined the cast onstage to sing Dawson’s Creek’s unforgettable theme song, “I Don’t Want To Wait” by Paula Cole. Olivia, 14, began the song as a solo with her younger sister Emilia, 9, joining her as the cast watched on. The crowd erupted into thunderous applause for the two girls before the rest of the cast joined them and Kimberly and the rest of the children came onstage to share in the moment.
Van Der Beek has remained optimistic in the face of his diagnosis “Miracles do happen — and they happen all the time,” he told People in November 2024. “It’s scary at the onset. It’s overwhelming. Go easy on yourself. You got this.”
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Original story published in Vanity Fair Italia.
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