Dawson's Creek creator claims late James Van Der Beek was a 'brat' when he started on iconic show

The creator of Dawson's Creek opened up about his first impressions of leading man James Van Der Beek when they first started working together on the iconic teen drama.

Kevin Williamson - who fought back tears while talking about the late star -  shared the playful back-and-forths they had on set while accepting the Hero Award at the Barbara Berlanti Heroes Gala in Santa Monica, California on Saturday.

Van Der Beek died from colorectal cancer in February at the age of 48 and this year Berlanti's gala honored Williamson with the honor.

Williamson - who was joined by Van Der Beek's co-star Joshua Jackson - had the audience laughing as he said: 'He started out as a brat.

'He would get a script and he would call me, and he would be like, "Why do I have to say this word? Nobody knows what this word means."'

The show creator had no problem sassing his leading man as he replied: 'I would say, "Well, don’t worry about it, the way you mumble nobody is going to hear it anyway."' 

Williamson, who lost his mother to lung cancer, later got more serious as he was emotional when he talked about Van Der Beek's portrayal of the dramatized version of his own teenage years as he said: 'James had a full character arc.'

The television show creator fought back tears as he said: 'James gave voice to my childhood, he was the soul of the show, and anyway, he was the ultimate upgrade.

'I had the great pleasure of knowing James over many years, I saw him go from a young kid to an extraordinary man - a husband, a father and a friend.'

According to Deadline, he added that James' death 'really knocked me over,' and called the table read benefit 'probably one of the most special nights of my life.'

'The only thing missing was James. He was meant to be there. We were holding down hope until the last second, the doctors just wouldn't let him get on the plane, but he still showed up that night with his unshakable courage and his spirit,' Kevin added. 

'I think he's here with us tonight. He's going to be with us for always. He's awesome, and so I can't pretend I'm worthy of any award but I will accept it. I'll accept it in memory of my mother. I will accept it in the memory of James Van Der Beek, and I will accept it for the entire Dawson's Creek family.'

The gala raises money for F Cancer's early detection, prevention and psychosocial initiatives. 

The event was launched by TV producer Greg Berlanti, who worked on Dawson's Creek, in honor of his mother who had died of cancer.

Van Der Beek's co-star Jackson along with TV writer-producer Julie Plec presented the award to Williamson

He was recognized for his role in organizing the September 2025 Dawson's Creek table read held to support James following his colon cancer diagnosis.

Jackson choked up as he spoke about Williamson's work to bring the cast together for the table read, which James had to miss at the last minute due to his ill health.  

'In the days before we went on stage to do this reading to support James, his health took a turn, and Kevin opened up not only his heart for making sure that everybody was okay, but also his wallet to make sure that we were able to honor James and honor his family at this event in truly the most amazing way possible,' the tearful star told the crowd.

'To allow his children to be in a room filled with people there to celebrate their dad as they had seen him go through what he was going through with humility and grace and to see the love for him that existed outside of their family.'

Dawson's Creek ran for six seasons until 2003 and followed the lives of a group of best friends who were students at Capeside High School.

It launched the careers of Katie Holmes, Michelle Williams, Jackson and Van Der Beek .

Playing the lead cemented James as a teen heartthrob, helped by his juggling of blockbuster roles in the likes of Varsity Blues and The Rules of Attraction during his years playing Dawson.

By the time the show ended James had also notched up the accolade of one of People Magazine's 50 most beautiful people.

By the late Noughties though he started to step out of the spotlight, taking on small screen roles and parts in off-Broadway productions as well as a Dancing With The Stars appearance.

He also moved from Los Angeles to Austin, Texas with his family in 2020 for a simpler life as they lived on a ranch.

He revealed in November 2024 that he had been diagnosed with colorectal cancer.

The actor said he had been 'privately dealing with this diagnosis and has been taking steps to resolve it with the support' of his incredible family. Tragically, he succumbed to his battle in February.