Fans recently saw James Van Der Beek in one of his final roles with the release of the Legally Blonde prequel series, Elle. Since then, a few of the show’s crew members have talked about what it was like working with the famous actor. In fact, it was revealed that the star had a big influence on his character’s journey, especially towards the end of the season.
James Van Der Beek Joined Elle As Dean Wilson, Which Was Released Posthumously
As an actor, Van Der Beek became known for his roles on Dawson’s Creek and Varsity Blues, earning him the reputation of a 1990s heartthrob. He also famously played a fictionalized version of himself on Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23.
Back in 2023, Van Der Beek was diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer. Tragically, the actor passed away on February 11 at the age of 48. He is survived by his wife, Kimberly, and their six children.
One of Van Der Beek’s final acting roles was on the Legally Blonde prequel series, Elle, which was released posthumously. He portrayed the character of Dean Wilson. Notably, the third episode featured the dedication, “In loving memory of James Van Der Beek.”
In the series, Van Der Beek’s character is a mayoral candidate and school superintendent. The character recruits Elle’s mother, Eva, as a de facto image consultant. Throughout the season, Eva helps him reinvent himself with a makeover. However, things aren’t as they appear, as he and the local school principal are embezzling funds, as Elle and her friends discover.
Looking back on Van Der Beek’s role with the show, series creator Laura Kittrell and exec producer Caroline Dries shared how thrilled they were that the actor wanted to be part of the series. Dries shared, “Laura and I are such big fans of his. So just getting to work with someone who was a hero when I was growing up was a treat. And getting to watch him take a character and elevate it was so exciting as a writer.”
One Series EP Shared That Van Der Beek Felt That Working On The Show Was Therapeutic For Him In A Way
Reportedly, Van Der Beek enjoyed playing a villain on the show. However, the character wasn’t without sympathies. According to Dries, this was the actor’s own idea, especially towards the end.
As the season came to an end, Dries shared, “It was important to James that, even as the character was leaving, he could have a moment with Eva [June Diane Raphael] to sort of explain himself. And to say at the end of the day, he actually is a good guy, he was just misguided and overwhelmed by circumstance. That was James’ idea to write that in.
“He called me on the weekend and was like, ‘Hey, can we add a little extra beat to give him an ending?’ I love that was his instinct. Because, of course, I was like, ‘Yeah, he should be, ‘Gotcha!’”
“And James was like, ‘Or maybe he’s like, “This is what I was working with. I had to do this. I’m sorry. I made a mistake.”‘ I was like, ‘That’s better.’”
Executive producer Jason Moore also highlighted that Van Der Beek was working on the show amid his cancer treatments. He claimed that the actor told him, “’It really is a time where I don’t feel my pain. Focusing on work, I really actually am completely distracted. Not only when the camera rolls. But just when I’m around all those people.’” Moore continued, “As he got sick, he got really wanted to hold people close. And bring people together. He was always really good at that.”
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John Witiw has been a writer since at least 2015. He’s covered a variety of topics, especially when it comes to film and television.
