It’s official: “Elle” is a hit, with the Reese Witherspoon-produced “Legally Blonde” prequel becoming the most-watched show on Amazon Prime Video during the week of its debut.
For fans of the film — and that’s a big group — “Elle” represents a delightful and nostalgic journey back to the 1990s to explore an early chapter in the story of Elle Woods (played in the series by newcomer Lexi Minetree, who watched “Legally Blonde 150 times to prepare for the role).
‘Elle’ Represents James Van Der Beek’s Final Role
For fans of James Van Der Beek, however, “Elle” is bittersweet, given that the series debuted posthumously — his final acting role before he passed away in February at age 48 after a battle with colorectal cancer.
The role was another bold, big swing for the former “Dawson’s Creek” star. His character, Dean Wilson, is a school district superintendent and mayoral candidate who befriends teenage Elle and her family when after they relocate to Seattle — but then reveals himself to be a villain.
The Creator of ‘Elle’ Was ‘Flattered’ He Wanted to Do the Show
In a recent interview with Variety, “Elle” creator Laura Kittrell and exec producer Caroline Dries shared how were thrilled that Van Der Beek wanted to be part of their series.
“We were so flattered that he wanted to do this show to begin with,” Dries said.
“Laura and I are such big fans of his, so just getting to work with someone who was a hero when I was growing up was a treat. And getting to watch him take a character and elevate it was so exciting as a writer,” she continued.
“When his name was up on the audition, it was great,” added exec producer Jason Moore, who’d worked with Van Der Beek on a few episodes of “Dawson’s Creek. “Since he turns out to be a bad guy, I was like ‘What fun for him.'”
James Van Der Beek Was Undergoing Cancer Treatment While Shooting ‘Elle’
During production on “Elle,” Van Der Beek was in the midst of cancer treatment. As Moore told Variety, Van Der Beek confided in him, explaining that being on set was therapeutic for him, shifting his mind away from his deteriorating health.
“’It really is a time where I don’t feel my pain,’” Van Der Beek told Moore. “’Focusing on work, I really actually am completely distracted, not only when the camera rolls, but just when I’m around all those people.’ As he got sick, he got really wanted to hold people close and bring people together. He was always really good at that.”
James Van Der Beek Relished Playing a Villain
Amazon MGM StudiosAfter becoming a ’90s teen idol with “Dawson’s Creek,” Van Der Beek made some bold career moves. That was certainly the case when he played an outrageous, outlandish version of himself in ABC sitcom “Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23.”
“I’m thrilled that people get to see how funny he is, and that he gets to be a little bad in a way I don’t think I’ve ever seen him do outside of ‘Rules of Attraction,’ which is an incredible performance from him,” said Kittrell. “But it was a different flavor on him that I am excited for people to get to see.”
James Van Der Beek Changed His Character’s Endgame
When concluding the debut season of “Elle,” Dries knew that the storyline of Van Der Beek’s character would end with Elle cracking the case. However, Van Der Beek offered a suggestion about how that story should end that painted Dean in a whole new light.
“But it was important to James that, even as the character was leaving, he could have a moment with Eva [June Diane Raphael] to sort of explain himself, and to say at the end of the day, he actually is a good guy, he was just misguided and overwhelmed by circumstance,” revealed Dries. “That was James’ idea to write that in; he called me on the weekend and was like, ‘Hey, can we add a little extra beat to give him an ending?’ I love that was his instinct, because, of course, I was like, ‘Yeah, he should be, “Gotcha!.” And James was like, ‘Or maybe he’s like, “This is what I was working with. I had to do this. I’m sorry. I made a mistake.”‘ I was like, ‘That’s better.'”
