The entertainment industry has lost another icon.
Beloved “Dawson’s Creek” star James Van Der Beek died at the age of 48 this week, following a battle with colorectal cancer.
While he first rose to fame playing an aspiring filmmaker on the ’90s teen drama, he went on to star in a varied list of projects, from “Don’t Trust the B in Apt. 23” to “The Rules of Attraction.” (His last TV project was the upcoming “Legally Blonde” prequel TV series, “Elle,” which premieres in July.)
Below, honor his legacy by revisiting some of his most memorable performances.
“Dawson’s Creek” (1998-2003)
Van Der Beek became a household name in the late ’90s on “Dawson’s Creek,” playing titular character, Dawson Leery for six seasons. The show follows the lives of a close-knit group of friends and also stars Katie Holmes, Joshua Jackson, Michelle Williams, Busy Philipps and more.
Stream it on: Hulu or Disney+
“Varsity Blues” (1999)
Following the debut of “Dawson’s Creek,” Van Der Beek landed his first major movie role in “Varsity Blues.” He played a high school back-up quarterback, Johnny Moxon, who steps up to lead the team — and contend with a toxic coach — after the original captain, Lance (Paul Walker), is injured.
Stream it on: Paramount+
“The Rules of Attraction” (2002)
While Van Der Beek began his career portraying small-town, all-American teenagers, he pivoted with a role as Sean Bateman, a self-described “emotional vampire” (and the brother of “American Psycho” main character Patrick Bateman). Set in a private college in the 1980s, this intense drama also stars Ian Somerhalder, Faye Dunaway, Jessica Biel and Kate Bosworth.
Stream it on: Prime Video
“Don’t Trust the B— in Apartment 23” (2012-2014)
Starting in 2012, Van Der Beek played a hilarious version of himself on this raunchy ABC sitcom about a Midwesterner (Dreama Walker) who moves in with big city party-girl Chloe (Krysten Ritter).
“I think once the [Dawson’s Creek] residual money ran out is really when it became okay to make fun of it,” he quipped in an NBC interview in 2012. “Thankfully, they’ve kept me around Hollywood long enough to kind of have a second coming, and it’s a lot more fun not to take myself so seriously.”
Buy it on: Prime Video
“What Would Diplo Do?” (2017)
The Hollywood fixture co-wrote, produced and starred in this 2017 Viceland comedy, playing a fictionalized version of DJ and songwriter Diplo (who also served as an executive producer).
“The only way to do it was if he was completely game to just make fun of himself and make fun of the world, and he was,” Van Der Beek told Coup de Main magazine in 2017.
Stream it on: Tubi
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