The stars of “Dawson’s Creek” are reuniting for the first time in 22 years — and it’s all for a special cause.
James Van Der Beek, Katie Holmes, Joshua Jackson, Michelle Williams and more will gather together Sept. 22 at the Richard Rodgers Theatre in New York City, according to an Aug. 20 press release.
The cast will give a live reading of the show’s pilot episode for a one-night-only charity event called “Dawson’s Creek Class Reunion.”
The event will benefit the nonprofit F Cancer and Van Der Beek, who announced last year that he’d been diagnosed with Stage 3 colorectal cancer.
Van Der Beek, Holmes, Jackson and Williams will be joined onstage by several other stars of the show, including Mary Beth Peil, John Wesley Shipp, Mary-Margaret Humes, Nina Repeta, Kerr Smith, Meredith Monroe and Busy Philipps.
Kevin Williamson, who created “Dawson’s Creek,” will serve as one of the benefit’s producers.
“I am so excited to reunite with James, Michelle, Katie, Joshua, and our ‘Dawson’s Creek’ family for such a special night.” Williamson said in a statement. “‘Dawson’s Creek’ changed my life. What began as a personal story about a young man and his friends navigating their way through the challenges of life became so much more than I ever dreamed. It created an enduring fandom and legacy all over the world.
“I am so honored to be a part of it and to support our beautiful friend, James, as we continue to navigate our way through life and its many challenges,” he added.
Williams said in a separate statement that the show’s stars “grew up in Capeside,” the show’s fictional Massachusetts setting, where they formed “a bond that will last a lifetime.”
“We wanted to gather around our dear friend James and remind him that we are all here. We always have been and we always will be. And I know the fans of ‘Dawson’s Creek’ feel the same way,” Williams added.
Van Der Beek teased the event by sharing a throwback picture on Instagram that showed him posing alongside Jackson, Holmes and Williams. He set the image to the show’s theme song, “I Don’t Want to Wait” by Paula Cole, and included the quote, “If we were truly meant to be, then we’ll find a way back to each other.”
“Dawson’s Creek” aired on The WB from 1998-2003 and followed a group of young people through their teenage and young adult years.
News of the benefit event comes about a month after a press release announced that Holmes and Jackson would co-star in a film trilogy, set to be written and directed by Holmes.
Van Der Beek went public with his cancer diagnosis in November 2024.
The 48-year-old actor told TODAY.com in July that since his diagnosis, he’s been practicing yoga, experimenting with a keto diet and finding other ways to support his health.
“I’m just on the journey. … It’s a process. It’ll probably be a process for the rest of my life,” he shared.
Van Der Beek, who was 46 when he learned he had cancer, said the diagnosis came as a shock.
“I ate as well as I could. I was healthy. I was in amazing cardiovascular shape,” he said. “There was no reason in my mind that I should have gotten a positive diagnosis.”
Since his diagnosis, Van Der Beek has been committed to spreading awareness about the importance of early screenings and detection as more people under 50 are being diagnosed.
“Guys I see at the gas station, people come up to me at a coffee shop, I appreciate it every time,” he said of fans who thank him for his candor about his health.
“That’s been stuff that really makes me cry. When people say, ‘I got checked, I got a colonoscopy, I got a polyp removed,’ … just to save somebody that journey.”
Tickets for “Dawson’s Creek Class Reunion” go on sale Aug. 22 at 1 p.m. ET on the Broadway Direct website.
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