"Dawson's Creek" alumni are remembering James Van Der Beek's life amid the ongoing fight against cancer.
Series stars Joshua Jackson and Mary-Margaret Humes – along with producer Greg Berlanti and TV writer and producer Julie Plec – reunited Saturday, Oct. 3, to honor series creator Kevin Williamson at the Barbara Berlanti Heroes Gala in Santa Monica, California. The event was named after Berlanti's mother, who died of cancer, and supports the nonprofit F Cancer.
Jackson, who played Pacey, best friend to Van Der Beek's Dawson on the series, walked the red carpet of the Heroes Gala with Humes, who played Van Der Beek's TV mom, Gail.
'Dawson's Creek' star James Van Der Beek remembered months after death
The "Cruel Intentions" star later joined Plec in presenting the award, recalling Williamson bringing the cast of the seminal
teen drama for a table read of the pilot script, which helped raise funds in support of F Cancer and Van Der Beek's colon cancer fight.
Van Der Beek had to drop out hours before the September 2025 event due to stomach viruses. The 48-year-old father of six died five months later after a two-year cancer fight on Feb. 11.
"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 OK, 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," Jackson said, per Deadline.
He added that the event allowed "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."
After accepting the award, Williamson called Van Der Beek "extraordinary" and "the ultimate upgrade" for giving "voice" to the writer's childhood, as the young actor was playing him onscreen, according to the outlet. He said the table read event was "probably one of the most special nights of my life" and that "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," said Williamson, Deadline reported.
"I think he's here with us tonight. He's going to be with us for always," he added. "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."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Dawson's Creek' alumni honor James Van Der Beek nearly 8 months after death
