Oscars 2026: James Van Der Beek left out of ‘In Memoriam’ section
Although the Oscars gave an emotional ‘In Memoriam’ tribute to icons like Robert Redford and Rob Reiner, James Van Der Beek was left out of the montage.
The ‘In Memoriam’ segment of the Academy Awards is a powerful moment that allows the industry to honour recently departed members of the community. However, the late James Van Der Beek was not included in the tribute, despite a storied career that included Varsity Blues, The Rules of Attraction, and Labor Day.
Best known for his titular role in the beloved teen soap opera Dawson’s Creek, Van Der Beek passed away in February after a prolonged battle with colon cancer. In his final years, Van Der Beek had been active in discussing his illness and advocating for men to receive cancer screenings.
Van Der Beek’s family raised an outpouring of support through GoFundMe to help pay for the medical costs related to his care. In 2025, Van Der Beek had merchandise from his films to help pay for the costs.
Van Der Beek’s breakout film role came one year into his run on Dawson’s Creek when he appeared in the Texas football film Varsity Blues, which also starred Paul Walker, Ali Larter, Scott Caan, and Jon Voight. While it received negative reviews at the time, Varsity Blues has since been reclaimed as a cult classic among football buffs, with Van Der Beek’s memorable delivery of the line “I don’t want your life” becoming particularly infamous.
Van Der Beek also had a significant role in The Rules of Attraction, a controversial adaptation of the Bret Easton Ellis novel that was adapted and directed by Roger Avary. Van Der Beek’s character, Sean Bateman, is described in the novel as being the brother of Patrick Bateman, a character in Ellis’s other book American Psycho, who was played by Christian Bale in the 2000 film adaptation.
Always someone who had a sense-of-humour about himself, Van Der Beek appeared as satirical versions of himself in Scary Movie and Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back. His final film, The Gates, was released in American theatres this month.
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