James Van Der Beek joined the striptease special The Real Full Monty to bring cancer awareness to a national audience.
The 47-year-old Dawson’s Creek alum — who was diagnosed with stage three colorectal cancer in August 2023 — joined Anthony Anderson in the Fox production that aired Monday.
‘The universe is hilarious. “I knew right away in my heart that I was doing this,” the Hollywood veteran said USA today about his involvement in the show.
He explained, “My brain had to catch up with what I was doing. To me, there was nothing that even resembled a man stripping, so this was really new. The added layer was that this would be the first time I talked about my diagnosis.”
In early November, James announced his diagnosis while plugging signed football shirts from his 1999 drama Varsity Blues, which raised money for cancer treatment.
“It was amazing and overwhelming,” he told the publication.
James Van Der Beek joined the striptease special The Real Full Monty to bring cancer awareness to a national audience
‘The universe is hilarious. I knew in my heart right away that I was doing this,” the Hollywood veteran said of his involvement with the show
“To find myself in a place where I am supported with so many well wishes has really surprised me,” said the grateful actor.
Taye Diggs, Tyler Posey, Chris Jones and Bruno Tonioli were also part of the initiative to spread information about men’s health.
Van Der Beek shared with the outlet: ‘Bruno and I go way back. I’ve always been an independent person, so relying on these guys for support was huge.
“Hopefully others will be inspired to see how I stop being Superman all the time and rely on my support system.”
Sharing a teaser for the special via Instagram on Sunday, he wrote in a caption to his 1.6 million followers: “One of the blessed moments of clarity I’ve had during this #cancer journey was saying yes to #TheRealFullMonty.”
He added, “I was coming off a medicine trip in the jungles of Colombia (more on that later) and at the Miami airport when I heard that @anthonyanderson was putting together a group of guys to do this specifically to raise awareness for early increase cancer. detection.
‘The attention-grabbing gimmick: learn and perform the Full Monty striptease in a theater in front of a live audience.’
The original comedy film, released in 1997, was directed by Peter Cattaneo.
Sharing a teaser for the special via Instagram on Sunday, he wrote in a caption to his 1.6 million followers: ‘One of the blessed moments of clarity I’ve had during this #cancer journey was saying yes to #TheRealFullMonty’
The 47-year-old Dawson’s Creek alum — who was diagnosed with stage three colorectal cancer in August 2023 — joined Anthony Anderson in the Fox production that aired Monday.
While promoting the Full Monty production, Van Der Beek recalled the time he was caught at an airport with an X-rated Dawson’s Creek video.
“I received the ‘Dawson’s Crack’ porn as a gift for The Rules of Attraction,” he told USA Today. “It was on VHS. That’s how long ago this was.’
On his way to North Carolina to work on the beloved television series, which starred Katie Holmes, he was stopped by TSA.
‘I wanted to show everyone that we made it. So I put it in my suitcase and went through security,” he recalled.
‘It was just after September 11th and security opened every suitcase, including mine. And it was right on top. It was not just a porno, but a porno based on a show I was in,” Van Der Beek said.
He said, “The TSA guard looked at me, was embarrassed and just closed the suitcase. And I was on my way.”
The actor is raising six children with his wife Kimberly, whom he married fourteen years ago
James dedicated a heartfelt Instagram post to his “super human” husband on Thanksgiving, praising her for her “unconditional love”
The actor is raising six children – Olivia, 14, Joshua, 12, Annabel, 10, Emilia, eight, Gwen, six and Jeremiah, three – with wife Kimberly, who he married 14 years ago.
James dedicated a heartfelt Instagram post to his “super human” husband on Thanksgiving, praising her for her “unconditional love.”
He also thanked their brood for keeping him “present, active and inspired.”
“It’s been a tough year… and I’m grateful for it. For the gigantic life redirect that cancer has placed in my path,” he shared on social media.
The star added, “For the gift of knowing what it feels like to have friends on such a deep level, and in ways I could never have asked for if I hadn’t experienced it.”