James Van Der Beek had a plan for a Dawson’s Creek reboot before his untimely death.
Dawson’s Creek creator Kevin Williamson opened up to Esquire about what the late actor, who died at age 48 after battling stage 3 colorectal cancer, envisioned for the show’s revival.
“I’ve always been resistant to Dawson’s Creek. I always felt like, ‘Well, we did that. We finished it.’ In the last episode, we jumped five years,” Williamson, 60, said, explaining that he didn’t feel like the show needed a reboot.
“We went to the future. The last episode of that show was the remake. So I feel very okay with that,” he said. “And I don’t feel the need to go back to that world, as much as I love them and would love to.”
Van Der Beek, however, had a vision for the cast members to reunite. “James and I talked about rebooting Dawson’s Creek several times,” Williamson shared. “He wanted to do it. And in fact, there was a moment where he was going to write it — and he had a really great idea for it.”
Williamson continued, gushing over Van Der Beek’s thoughts, “He had a beautiful plan. Then I think he got on a show and everybody got busy. It never happened. But there was a lot of talk about it.”
The actor’s death was announced via a statement on his Instagram page on February 11. “Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning,” the message read. “He met his final days with courage, faith, and grace.”
The statement continued, “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.”
Van Der Beek shared his diagnosis in November 2024. “I’ve been privately dealing with this diagnosis and have been taking steps to resolve it, with the support of my incredible family,” he told People. “There’s reason for optimism, and I’m feeling good.” He also shared that he had “a lot to live for.”
“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,’” he said.
He later told Extra in March 2025 that he could “see the finish line” of his cancer battle.
Van Der Beek planned to reunite with his Dawson’s Creek costars in March 2025, but had to miss the event, which Michelle Williams organized to benefit him and the nonprofit charity F Cancer, due to a health setback.
“You can imagine how gutted I was when two stomach viruses conspired to knock me out of commission and keep me grounded at the worst possible moment,” Van Der Beek wrote via Instagram ahead of the reunion. “Despite every effort … I won’t get to be there. 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.”
