Love is stepping up — and that’s precisely what Kimberly Van Der Beek did after James Van Der Beek revealed he couldn’t attend the ‘Dawson’s Creek’ reunion.” Kimberly is ensuring the spirit of “Dawson’s Creek” lives on, encouraging fans to participate in the reunion despite her husband’s absence. After “DWTS” alum James, 48, revealed that he would miss the September 22 charity reunion due to health reasons, fans flooded his comments with requests to reschedule the event.
(Photo by Jerod Harris/Getty Images)One wrote, “I have tickets! Can you reschedule? I’m a single Mom driving up all [alone] for this event 🙁 Keep my money – but I want to see you!”
Kimberly Van Der Beek Encourages Fans to Attend Reunion With Family
Kimberly quickly reassured fans (As reported by US Weekly): “Come! It will be so special. His whole family will be there too.” She also confirmed that she and their six children would be in attendance, writing, “We are all here! Was important to him we come!!”
James Shares Why He Couldn’t Be There
James explained on Instagram that he was “gutted” to miss the reunion after “two stomach viruses conspired to knock [him] out of commission and keep [him] grounded at the worst possible moment.”
“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,” he wrote.
The actor, who is battling stage 3 colorectal cancer, said he would be watching from home in Austin and asked fans to “shine some love on my family.”
Lin-Manuel Miranda Steps In as Surprise ‘Understudy‘
Though he couldn’t be there, James revealed that an unexpected star would take his place. “I DO have an understudy… a ridiculously overqualified replacement who would have been #1 on my wishlist,” he joked.
The role of Dawson was read by Lin-Manuel Miranda, who James said his kids already considered a “demigod.”
Cast & Family Rally Around James Amid Cancer Battle
The reunion, organized with F Cancer, brought together original cast members including Michelle Williams, Katie Holmes, and Joshua Jackson. Former castmates Mary Beth Peil, John Wesley Shipp, Mary-Margaret Humes, Nina Repeta, Kerr Smith, Meredith Monroe, and Busy Philipps also participated.
Humes told Us Weekly that the event was a way to “celebrate James’ life” and support him as he continues his health battle.
James, who shares six children with Kimberly, has been open about balancing work with treatment. “The greatest thing about work is cancer doesn’t exist between action and cut,” he told Today in July. “It was fun to drop in… but living with cancer has become my full-time job.”
