James Van Der Beek is an American actor. He became famous through his starring role in the tv series Dawson’s Creek.
So let’s find out some trivia and facts about the famous actor’s life and career.
- His full name is James David Van Der Beek
- He was born on March 8, 1977
- He is an American actor
- He is best known for his portrayal of Dawson Leery in the WB series Dawson’s Creek
- He played a fictionalized version of himself on the cult ABC sitcom Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23
- He also starred in CSI: Cyber as FBI Special Agent Elijah Mundo
- And as Matt Bromley on the FX drama Pose
- His film roles include Varsity Blues (1999) and The Rules of Attraction (2002)
- Van Der Beek was born in Cheshire, Connecticut
- He is the son of Melinda, a former dancer and gymnastics teacher
- And James William Van Der Beek, a cellular phone company executive and former professional baseball pitcher
- He is partly of Dutch ancestry
- His last name translates to “from the creek”
- At the age of 15, he asked his mother to take him into New York City to get an agent and try his hand in professional acting
- He made his professional debut off-Broadway at age 16 in 1993
- He made his debut in the New York premiere of Edward Albee’s play Finding the Sun with the Signature Theatre Company
- He played the role of “Fergus”
- Both he and the production, which was also directed by Albee, received positive reviews
- A decade later, in 2003, he appeared again off-Broadway, briefly, in the play Rain Dance
- Aged 17, while still in high school at Cheshire Academy, he performed in the musical Shenandoah at the Goodspeed Opera House
- And made his feature film debut in a bit role as a bully in Angus (1995)
- And shot a small role in the independent film I Love You, I Love You Not (1996)
- He attended Drew University, on an academic scholarship
- There he participated in an all-male a cappella group
- But dropped out to pursue acting
- He performed at the Vineyard Theater in New York in Nicky Silver’s play, My Marriage to Ernest Borgnine
- He played a supporting role in the independent film Cash Crop
- It was originally shot in spring of 1997 and originally titled Harvest until released in 2001
- Van Der Beek was previously married to actress Heather McComb from 2003
- Until their separation in April 2009
- Van Der Beek filed for divorce in the fall of that year
- The divorce was finalized and enforced in spring 2010
- Van Der Beek married business consultant Kimberly Brook on August 1, 2010
- In a small ceremony at the Kabbalah Center near Dizengoff Plaza in Tel Aviv, Israel
- The couple have five children
- Olivia was born on September 25, 2010
- Joshua born on March 13, 2012
- Annabel born on January 25, 2014
- Emilia born on March 23, 2016
- And Gwendolyn born on June 15, 2018
- They have announced in October 2019 they were expecting their sixth child
- In November 2019 it was revealed that Van der Beek’s wife, Kimberly, had suffered a miscarriage
- He made a cameo in the film Downsizing (2017), starring Matt Damon
- He voices Boris Hauntley in the Disney Junior show Vampirina
- Van Der Beek is one of the celebrities competing on the 28th season of Dancing with the Stars
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