James Van Der Beek’s final role will be released posthumously.
The late actor is set to appear as Dean Wilson in the upcoming Legally Blonde prequel Elle, which is set to be released via Prime Video in July.
The show will follow Elle Woods, whom everyone knows as the unexpected Harvard Law School student from the 2001 movie Legally Blonde, as a high school student.
“We learn about the life experiences that shaped her into the iconic young woman we came to know and love in the first Legally Blonde film,” the show’s official synopsis reads. “In other words, get ready for the teen years of this legendary lawyer’s story.”
The show’s expected premiere date will be nearly five months after Van Der Beek’s death. (Details about whether or not the show will address Van Der Beek’s death have yet to be revealed.)
The Dawson’s Creek alum died at age 48 on Wednesday, February 11. A statement via Instagram announced his death, following a lengthy cancer battle.
“Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning. He met his final days with courage, faith, and grace,” the statement read. “There is much to share regarding his wishes, love for humanity and the sacredness of time. Those days will come. For now we ask for peaceful privacy as we grieve our loving husband, father, son, brother, and friend.”
Van Der Beek announced in November 2024 that he had been diagnosed with stage III colorectal cancer in August 2023.
“I’ve been privately dealing with this diagnosis and have been taking steps to resolve it, with the support of my incredible family,” the actor shared in a statement with People at the time. “There’s reason for optimism, and I’m feeling good.”
Despite his illness, the actor continued to work on several acting projects.
Van Der Beek announced his involvement in Elle with a May 2025 Instagram post.
“So, this is exciting … I’m going back to work for a bit,” he wrote at the time. “Super excited to join this awesome cast in such a fun project. Almost as excited as my wife and girls are that I’m doing this.”
Van Der Beek is survived by wife Kimberly Van Der Beek and their six kids, daughters Olivia, Annabel, Emilia and Gwendolyn and sons Joshua and Jeremiah.
The actor’s final role prior to his death was in the Tubi original film Sidelined 2: Intercepted — released in late 2025 — where he played the role of Leroy Lahey, the father to Noah Beck’s character, Drayton Lahey. (The movie was a sequel to the 2024 film Sidelined: The QB and Me.)
“He was amazing,” Beck said during an interview with Entertainment Tonight in 2024 about working with Van Der Beek. “It’s, kind of, a perfect little segue from his character in Varsity Blues.”
Van Der Beek also appeared in two episodes of Benito Skinner’s Prime Video series Overcompensating as Charlie.
“A legend in every way,” Skinner shared via social media in the wake of Van Der Beek’s death.
