James Van Der Beek Shares Six Children With His Wife Kimberly — Let's Meet the Fam!

For people of a certain age, it's hard to imagine Dawson Leery as a father. Sorry, we mean actor James Van Der Beek, who played Dawson Leery on the teen drama Dawson's Creek.

The show premiered in 1998 and introduced us to a sensitive teenager with a passion, nay obsession, for movies. Along with his best pals Joey (Katie Holmes) and Pacey (Joshua Jackson), Dawson learned to navigate an often unforgiving world.

After Dawson's Creek ended in 2003, James had mild success with various film and television roles but perhaps the best part he's ever played is that of dad to his own children.

He and his wife Kimberly married in August 2010 and went on to have six kids, all of whom are very blonde just like their parents. Here's what we know about the Van Der Beeks.

In May 2023, James went on Good Morning America to discuss the impact of having children on him. He and his wife Kimberly have four daughters, Olivia, Annabel, Emilia, and Gwendolyn as well as two sons, Joshua and Jeremiah, who were all under the age of 13 at the time.

He said that with his kids, "The lessons, they keep on coming." Their joy becomes his joy and vice versa, which in turn stretches out beyond the boundaries of his own family.

James told Morning Honey that his kids are definitely creative. "I'm a big believer in having creative expression," he explained. "Any business can be tricky to navigate, but if it's in their heart to pursue it, I don't think there's any way I could talk them out of it."

In order to help foster this creativity, James and Kimberly made the decision to move from Los Angeles to Austin, Texas in September 2020.

"The kids have so much more room to roam and have a direct connection with nature," he said. "It's amazing for them to recognize the plants that are growing and appreciate the rain falling. It's important for them to have that kind of natural rhythm." This lends itself to James' favorite part about being a dad which is "having happy kids."

He hopes to teach his children that life can be an adventure. "I want them to be excited about learning something new."

James and Kimberly welcome their sixth son, Jeremiah Van Der Beek, in October 2021. A month after his birth, they introduced him to the world in a heartfelt Instagram post on James' page where he revealed Kimberly had two miscarriages prior to his birth.

A doctor in Texas was able to diagnose Kimberly with an incompetent cervix to which James jokingly asked, "What kind of misogynistic old dude invented that term?" The doctor responded with a laugh, which made James like him immediately.

After a minor surgical procedure called a cerclage was performed, Kimberly was able to carry her sixth pregnancy to term. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, a cerclage is when you temporarily stitch the cervix closed in order to hold a pregnancy in the uterus.

"The medical books say to only look at a cerclage as an option after three late-term losses," explained James. "Our doctor recommends considering it after one. Spread the word."