When Mary-Margaret Humes first found out her Dawson’s Creek onscreen son James Van Der Beek was battling stage 3 colorectal cancer diagnosis, it eerily reminded her of her own private battle with colon cancer back in 2007.
‘It was just about ready to break out of the wall,’ the 71-year-old actress recalled to Us Weekly on Tuesday.
‘It could’ve been a terrible situation, but we caught it in time. My doctor said we dodged a bullet, and it was all because of early detection. Cancers are survivable, but go out and get screened — thankfully, that’s part of James’ journey.’
Mary-Margaret has had multiple ‘uplifting and spiritual’ conversations with the 48-year-old father-of-six: ‘He knows I’ve got his back 100 percent. He’s going to get through this, and we’re all coming together.’
Next Monday, the talented ensemble will assemble for the first time since 2018 to attend Dawson’s Creek Class Reunion at the Richard Rodgers Theater in Midtown Manhattan, which benefits James and the non-profit F*** Cancer.
When Mary-Margaret Humes first found out her Dawson’s Creek onscreen son James Van Der Beek was battling stage 3 colorectal cancer diagnosis, it eerily reminded her of her own private battle with colon cancer back in 2007 (pictured December 8)
Humes, Van Der Beek, Katie Holmes, Michelle Williams, Joshua Jackson, Mary Beth Peil, John Wesley Shipp, Nina Repeta, Kerr Smith, Meredith Monroe, and Busy Philipps will perform a live reading of the 1998 pilot episode.
The nostalgic Dawson’s Creek event, which sold out in 12 minutes, aims to raise awareness of the importance of early detection.
‘The first phone call I got was from James himself,’ the Cowboy Christmas Romance actress said of the reunion.
‘He told me that Michelle was spearheading this, and it was a way for us to actually have a reunion, all of us together, and celebrate James’ life. Because he’s dealing with a very difficult situation; very optimistic, but a difficult situation. Together as a TV family, we just thought we needed to be there for him and rally around him.’
Mary-Margaret famously portrayed Dawson’s controversial restaurateur mom Gale Leery opposite John Wesley Shipp in Kevin Williamson’s teen soap, which aired for six seasons spanning 1998-2003 on The WB.
Humes was nicknamed ‘den mother’ on set because she would ‘take the kids under my wing.’
‘But they didn’t need much guidance. We all just fell into this,’ the New York-born beauty explained.
The 71-year-old actress told Us Weekly on Tuesday: ‘It could’ve been a terrible situation, but we caught it in time. My doctor said we dodged a bullet, and it was all because of early detection. Cancers are survivable, but go out and get screened — thankfully, that’s part of James’ journey’ (pictured in 2022)
Mary-Margaret has had multiple ‘uplifting and spiritual’ conversations with the 48-year-old father-of-six: ‘He knows I’ve got his back 100 percent. He’s going to get through this, and we’re all coming together’
Next Monday, the talented ensemble will assemble for the first time since 2018 to attend Dawson’s Creek Class Reunion at the Richard Rodgers Theater in Midtown Manhattan, which benefits James and the non-profit F*** Cancer
Humes, Van Der Beek, Katie Holmes, Michelle Williams, Joshua Jackson, Mary Beth Peil, John Wesley Shipp, Nina Repeta, Kerr Smith, Meredith Monroe, and Busy Philipps will perform a live reading of the 1998 (pictured) pilot episode
The Cowboy Christmas Romance actress famously portrayed Dawson’s controversial restaurateur mom Gale Leery opposite John Wesley Shipp (L) in Kevin Williamson’s teen soap, which aired for six seasons spanning 1998-2003 on The WB
Mary-Margaret was nicknamed ‘den mother’ on set because she would take the kids under her wing: ‘But they didn’t need much guidance. We all just fell into this’ (pictured in 2002)
Humes will also compete in the TV moms-themed episode of Fox game show Celebrity Weakest Link – airing next Monday – alongside Melinda Clarke, Caroline Rhea, and Jackée Harry
The New York-born beauty first made a name for herself as Miss Florida USA 1975 before making her big-screen debut as vestal virgin Miriam in Mel Brooks’ 1981 comedy History of the World, Part I
‘Everybody just gelled as a family and came together. There were no ego problems — there were tense moments behind the scenes from time to time, but that will remain a mystery!’
Mary-Margaret will also compete in the TV moms-themed episode of Fox game show Celebrity Weakest Link – airing next Monday – alongside Melinda Clarke, Caroline Rhea, and Jackée Harry.
Humes first made a name for herself as Miss Florida USA 1975 before making her big-screen debut as vestal virgin Miriam in Mel Brooks’ 1981 comedy History of the World, Part I.
