James Van Der Beek has died at age 48.
A representative for the Travis County Medical Examiner's Office in Austin, Texas told TMZ that the actor’s death was reported to them at 6:44 AM, and no cause of death was provided.
The actor had revealed in late 2024 that he was battling colorectal cancer and was forced to drop out of a planned September 2025 reunion with his Dawson's Creek castmates due to health reasons.
“Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning. He met his final days with courage, faith, and grace,” James’ wife Kimberly Van Der Beek said in an Instagram post. “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.”
As explained by the American Cancer Society, colorectal cancer begins in the colon or the rectum, both of which are parts of the large intestine within the digestive system. Depending on where they start, the cancers can either be referred to colon cancer or rectal cancer.
In an interview with Good Morning America’s Robin Roberts, the actor said he was “honestly in shock” when he was diagnosed in August 2023.
“I was doing what I thought I needed to do by getting a colonoscopy, which obviously, I did need to do,” he said at the time. “I was in amazing cardiovascular shape, I was eating what I thought was healthy. And I had a whole agenda for what I thought my year would be and what I thought my priorities would be in the next couple weeks and months.
And the reality that all of that was going to change and take a different trajectory–it felt like a nightmare honestly at first, that I couldn't quite wake up from. It's a lot.”
Despite the news, the actor shared his optimism for the future.
“As soon as I got diagnosed, I knew, 'Alright, this is going to add many happy years to my life,'" Van Der Beek said. “I'm going to make changes that I never would have made otherwise, that I'm gonna look back on thirty years and say, ‘Thank God this happened.' So what can I do right now in order to make that the case
“And that's how it was about 90 percent of the time. I would say that about ten-percent of the time I was a sobbing, terrified mess."
Van Der Beek rose to fame in the late 1990s as the lead in Dawson's Creek, and later became known for roles in Varsity Blues, among others.
He is survived by wife Kimberly and children Olivia, Joshua, Annabel, Emilia, Gwendolyn, and Jeremiah.
