James Van Der Beek has revealed the reason why he doesn’t want his children to watch Dawson’s Creek.
The 47-year-old actor, who played the main character in the American teen drama, explained that he didn’t want his children to “watch their dad pretend to go through puberty”.
Appearing on Wednesday’s episode ofThe View (4 December), Van Der Beek was asked if he lets his children watch the show, to which he replied: “I do not. It’s a great show, I love the show, and I think other kids can watch it.
“I just don’t think my kids need to watch their dad pretend to go through puberty. That’s my stance on it.”
The actor, who played the aspiring small-town filmmaker in the series, shares six children – daughters Olivia, Annabel, Emilia and Gwendolyn, and sons Joshua and Jeremiah – with his wife Kimberly.
This comes after a taxing year for Van Der Beek and his family. Having initially kept his cancer diagnosis private, he recently came forward to encourage men to take care of their health.
He said the biggest benefit of “being brought to my knees” by his illness was “accepting help”.
The actor approached the situation with “honesty”, telling his children what the diagnosis meant for both them and him. The experience has shown him that he doesn’t need to be “Superman all the time”.
In November, Van Der Beek revealed had been diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer. He said his first symptom was a change in bowel habits that was not rectified by altering his diet.
He reminded viewers that, in the US, 45 (or 40 if you have a family history of the illness) is now the recommended age to get a colorectal cancer screening. According to the UK’s NHS, you are at a higher risk of bowel cancer if you are over 50.
His interview on The View comes ahead of his appearance in The Real Full Monty. The show, featuring a host of male celebrities, will be put on to raise awareness for prostate, testicular, and colorectal cancer testing and research.
Van Der Beek explained: “The idea was if we can strip naked, to a dance, to music, in a live theatre in Los Angeles, then you can have a conversation with your doctor that might save your life.”
The Real Full Monty will debut on Monday (9 December) and will stream on Hulu the following day.
