Dawson's Creek star Joshua Jackson and series creator Kevin Williamson break down in tears as they pay tribute to 'the soul of our show' James Van Der Beek at cancer charity gala

James Van Der Beek's Dawson's Creek colleagues were moved to tears as they paid tribute to the late actor during a charity gala.

Joshua Jackson and the show's creator Kevin Williamson took to the stage at The Barbara Berlanti Heroes Gala, an event launched by TV producer Greg Berlanti, who worked on Dawson's, in honour of his mother who had died of cancer.

James died from colorectal cancer in February at the age of 48 and this year Berlanti's gala honoured Kevin Williamson with the Barbara Berlanti Hero Award.

Kevin was presented with the gong by Dawson's star Joshua and TV writer-producer Julie Plec, at Saturday's event at the Barker Hanger in Santa Monica. 

Mary-Margaret Humes, who played Dawson's mom on the show, also walked the red carpet with Joshua.

Kevin was recognised for his role in organising the September 2025 Dawson's Creek table read held to support James following his colon cancer diagnosis.

Joshua choked up as he spoke about Kevin'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 honour James and honour 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.'

Kevin, who lost his mother to lung cancer, also fought back tears while recalling his early days working with James on the show that he based on his own teenage years. 

'James gave voice to my childhood, he was the soul of the show, and anyway, he was the ultimate upgrade,' Kevin said. 

'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.'

'James had a full character arc. 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." And I would say, "Well, don't worry about it, the way you mumble, nobody is going to hear it anyway." That was our relationship - Dawson talking to Dawson.'

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. 

Among the other honourees on Saturday was The Pitt star Katherine LaNasa, who spoke about getting a breast cancer diagnosis in early 2023. She received the Inspirational Hero Award which was presented to her by The Pitt creator/executive producer R. Scott Gemmill. 

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, Joshua and James.

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.