Why James Van Der Beek Saw &x27;Almost Nothing&x27; from "Dawson&x27;s Creek "Residuals Despite Show&x27;s Success Angela AndaloroThu, February 12, 2026 at 9:13 PM UTC 0 James Van Der Beek in May 2025 JC Olivera/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty James Van Der Beek's family is looking for their financial path forward after the actor's death at 48 Fans of his career have questioned why the actor wasn't put on the path to financial success after six seasons as Dawson Leery on Dawson's Creek Van Der Beek opened up about his financial situation, advocating for himself and others in recent years F...
Why James Van Der Beek Saw 'Almost Nothing' from "Dawson's Creek "Residuals Despite Show's Success
Angela AndaloroThu, February 12, 2026 at 9:13 PM UTC
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James Van Der Beek in May 2025
JC Olivera/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty
James Van Der Beek's family is looking for their financial path forward after the actor's death at 48
Fans of his career have questioned why the actor wasn't put on the path to financial success after six seasons as Dawson Leery on Dawson's Creek
Van Der Beek opened up about his financial situation, advocating for himself and others in recent years
Fans of James Van Der Beek and Dawson's Creek are looking for answers after learning his family is struggling financially following his death.
On Feb. 11, the actor's wife, Kimberly Van Der Beek, announced the news that he died at age 48 after a journey with stage 3 colorectal cancer. Shortly after, friends helped set up a GoFundMe on behalf of the family. In 24 hours, over $1 million had been raised.
"In the wake of this loss, Kimberly and the children are facing an uncertain future," the GoFundMe description reads. "The costs of James's medical care and the extended fight against cancer have left the family out of funds. They are working hard to stay in their home and to ensure the children can continue their education and maintain some stability during this incredibly difficult time. The support of friends, family, and the wider community will make a world of difference as they navigate the road ahead."
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James Van Der Beek and family
james van der beek/instagram
The GoFundMe follows months of other fundraising efforts for the family, which included selling off memorabilia from some of his biggest roles. It has left many fans wondering how the star of such a prominent hit could have had such a difficult time financially.
The answer is complicated. In part, there's the fact that per the CDC, colorectal cancer has the second-highest treatment cost of any cancer, accounting for 11.6% of all cancer treatment costs. Their statistics indicate that as of 2020, end-of-life costs, for the last year of a patient's life, were the highest that they are throughout the illness.
As for Van Der Beek's time on television for Dawson's Creek, the actor himself spoke candidly about it in 2012.
Katie Holmes, James Van Der Beek, Kerr Smith, Michelle Williams and Joshua Jackson
Kevin Mazur/WireImage
"There was no residual money," he told TODAY.com. "I was 20. It was a bad contract. I saw almost nothing from that."
In the 2012 interview, he said he signed on for the show, Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23, which premiered that year, "when the [Dawson's Creek] money ran out."
He explained that he "buckled down" and signed on for projects around that time to provide for his family. "It is very easy if you have all the money in the world to just sit back and coast. But if you realized that you are going to have to start providing for yourself and for your family, it really forces you to buckle down," he shared.
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Rachel True, who appeared on two episodes of Dawson's Creek, noted in a tweet that shows that did not air on network television are impacted by residuals rules.
"TV shows not on ABC, CBS, or NBC are considered already 'syndicated' & all that means they don't have to pay proper residuals to actors. It F's actors like James out of their deserved financial security & proper legacy," she wrote.
Dawson's Creek aired on the WB for six seasons from 1998 through 2003.
Michelle Williams, James Va Der Beek, Joshua Jackson, Katie Holmes, Meredith Monroe and Kerr Smith
Getty
Van Der Beek commented on the residuals situation during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike.
Speaking to the reasons behind the strike in an Instagram video showing his support, he explained, "The big things have to do with issues that would allow writers and actors who are just starting out to earn something that looks like a living wage — things like residuals, which have all but disappeared in the streaming era."
"These are nothing to multi-billion dollar corporations, but they're everything to people trying to pay their groceries and their rent."
While there were wins on the subject of residuals at the strike's conclusion, many actors have argued they don't properly account for how streaming views have dwarfed broadcast viewership in recent years.
SAG-AFTRA's post honoring Van Der Beek after his death contains comments and replies filled with criticism of the union's healthcare system, which has come under significant scrutiny in recent years for a work requirement that disqualifies actors who don't meet a certain income threshold or number of days worked over a period of time.
It first became the subject of a lawsuit in 2020, when the number of ongoing productions dwindled significantly as a result of pandemic shutdowns and requirements across different states, leaving many actors faced with losing their health insurance. It was at that time that the union sought to raise the threshold for insurance eligibility to those earning $25,950 a year, from $18,040, per The New York Times.
As of Jan. 1, 2026, an actor must make $28,090, or work 108 "eligibility days" to be covered by the union's insurance. Van Der Beek was diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer in August 2023, and had since appeared in four films and three TV series, including two projects which have yet to be released.
on People
Source: "AOL Entertainment"
Source: Entertainment
Published: February 12, 2026 at 11:45PM on Source: MANUEL MAG
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