James Van Der Beek: We are right to feel shocked by his death
James Van Der Beek has died. He was only 48 years old.
Van Der Beek was public about his colorectal cancer diagnosis in November 2024, along with the financial cost of battling the illness. His passing is not a surprise, nor are the fundraising efforts to support Van Der Beek’s wife and kids.
While his death was not a surprise, it was certainly a shock.
James Van Der Beek was an icon for people of a certain age. I’m of an age where I had Beverly Hills 90210 defining the TV teen drama when I was on the cusp of becoming a teen, with Dawson’s Creek redefining the teen drama – debuting just after I had graduated from high school.
The cast of Dawson’s Creek shone bright, with a fame that echoed the 90210 actors in those early years. In the years following the show, the cast had greater success at keeping their careers alive and maintaining cultural relevance. Well, maybe not the entire cast. Dawson himself, James Van Der Beek struggled.
Van Der Beek was never short of work. In the years following Dawson’s Creek he was in multiple TV show ensembles (Friends With Better Lives, CSI: Cyber, Pose, Mercy), but was never the lead. During peak Dawson’s Creek, he starred in the hit Varsity Blues, but following that it was more a succession of indie films and direct-to-video features.
I really liked him as the lead of Rules of Attraction, based on the Bret Easton Ellis book where he played Sean Bateman (brother of American Psycho’s Patrick Bateman). And he was tremendously funny playing himself as a cast member on sitcom Don’t Trust The B—— in Apartment 23. I was always very happy to see him on screen and often felt he should have had better opportunities.
In a lot of ways, Van Der Beek’s career followed more in the trajectory of the 90210 cast than it did his contemporaries. And like when we heard about the passing of Luke Perry and Shannon Doherty, the news felt like a guttural punch – it wasn’t just the death of a beloved TV star… it was a teen idol who we never properly embraced as an adult. Van Der Beek represented our youth and the loves, challenges, and decisions made during those years that go on to frame our adult lives.
From the New York Times obituary today:
Asked in 2023 what advice he would give his younger self, he said on “Good Morning America,” choosing to be philosophical: “Don’t be surprised if six years of work gets reduced to a three-second GIF of you crying,” adding, “It’s all good.”
News Desk
The fourth season of The White Lotus is assembling the most White Lotus-y cast the show has seen with the excellent casting of Sandra Bernhard. She’s fantastic. Read: Deadline
Thanks to TV shows like Law & Order, Daredevil: Born Again and Only Murders in the Building, there were more murders in New York on TV last year than the real life New York. There were 347 TV murders vs 305 IRL. Dun dun. Read: THR
Sky in the UK will launch an “Ultimate TV” package that will offer Disney+, Netflix, Hayu, and HBO Max for £24 a month. The services offered are all the cheapest, ad-supported plans. Currently in the UK they are priced at: Disney+ (£5.99/month), Netflix (£5.99/month), Hayu (£5.99/month), HBO Max (£4.99/month). To subscribe individually, it’d cost £22.96, but you’re also getting Sky with its 130 channels for £1.04, so that’s a pretty good deal if you’re after all of those services. FYI, that’s AUS$45.89 / US$32.70. Read: Sky
Dolby Vision and 3D have been removed from Disney+ in several European countries, disabling stereoscopic movie playback on Apple Vision Pro. It is believed to be related to a patent dispute. Read: UploadVR
Apple has bought the TV show Severance (the IP and all rights) from producer Fifth Season in a deal worth just under $70m. The show will be produced in-house by Apple Studios going forward. Read: Deadline
RIP Bud Cort – The Harold & Maude star was 77. Read: Variety
Noel Clarke, an actor best known for co-starring in UK kids show Doctor Who, has been arrested in relation to historical rape allegations. Read: Radio Times
About a quarter of CBS Evening News staffers eligible for buyouts have jumped at the opportunity. Free press. Read: New York Post
ITV has confirmed that The British Soap Awards will not air in 2026. Read: Radio Times
Trailer Park
Scarpetta debuts on Prime Video March 11. It stars cinema evangelist Nicole Kidman, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Bobby Carnavale.
With skilled hands and an unnerving eye, Dr. Kay Scarpetta tries to unmask a serial killer and prove that her career-making case from 28 years earlier isn’t also her undoing.
Scrubs returns Feb 25 on ABC (Feb 26 on Hulu) for what it is labelling as ‘season one,’ so I guess this is officially a sequel series now and not a continuation?
With the show picking up in modern day, the series reunites the original cast for more heartwarming laughs and hijinks while introducing a new generation of interns.
Vladimir debuts on Netflix March 5. It stars Rachel Weisz and Leo Woodall.
When a passionate but reckless professor's world begins to unravel, she finds herself dangerously fixated on her magnetic new colleague. Seduction and obsession collide in Vladimir - a provocative limited series brimming with forbidden desires, razor-sharp wit, and charismatic, unpredictable characters. As boundaries blur and secrets simmer, she'll risk everything to bring her most scandalous fantasies to life. Based on the acclaimed novel by Julia May Jonas.
Rental Family debuts on Hulu Feb 18.
In modern-day Tokyo, American actor Phillip (Brendan Fraser) struggles to find purpose until he lands an unusual gig: working for a Japanese "rental family" agency, playing stand-in roles for strangers. As he immerses himself in his clients' worlds, he begins to form genuine bonds that blur the lines between performance and reality. Confronting the moral complexities of his work, he rediscovers purpose, belonging, and the quiet beauty of human connection.
Louis Theroux: Inside The Manosphere debuts on Netflix March 11.
Agents of Mystery is back for season 2 on Netflix Feb 27.
Tyler Perry’s Joe College Road Trip debuts on Netflix Feb 13.
To teach his sheltered grandson about the real world, Madea's foul-mouthed brother Joe takes the college-bound teen on a raucous cross-country road trip.
That’s the newsletter for the today.
Consider becoming a paid supporter of Always Be Watching.
Connect with Dan on Bluesky. Connect with Dan on Letterboxd. Connect with Dan on Linkedin. Email Dan @ alwaysbewatching.com or just reply to this email.
