James Van Der Beek isn’t letting his battle with cancer stop him from spending quality time with his children.
“Happy Halloween!!!!” James’ wife, Kimberly Van Der Beek, wrote as she showed off their looks on Saturday, November 1, sharing photos of the family’s costumes from the previous evening.
James was dressed as the Phantom of the Opera, a look he completed with a tuxedo, white bowtie, and a matching half-face mask. Kimberly was dressed as a fox with a spiderweb painted on her neck.
“Phantom and the Fox,” Kimberly wrote via her Instagram Stories, posting a selfie with her spouse during the holiday.
The couple are parents to Olivia, 15, Joshua, 13, Annabel, 11, Emilia, 9, Gwendolyn, 7, and Jeremiah, 4, who all wore individual costumes on Friday. Annabel and Emilia dressed as the Statue of Liberty and a witch, while Joshua wore a skeleton outfit. Gwendolyn was dressed as Rumi from K-Pop Demon Hunters and Jeremiah went as an adorable lime-green bear.
After posing for photos, James and Kimberly took their children to trick-or-treat around their neighborhood. The family navigated the streets in style, using a golf cart to make their way around to collect candy.
“A trick-or-treat golf cart?! Don’t mind if we do,” Kimberly wrote via her Stories, sharing a pic of James in the front seat with Jeremiah. “Thanks to my babe @odetteannable.”
James revealed in fall 2023 that he was diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer.
“I’ve been privately dealing with this diagnosis and have been taking steps to resolve it, with the support of my incredible family,” the Dawson’s Creek alum told People in November 2023, revealing he privately underwent an undisclosed form of treatment. “There’s reason for optimism, and I’m feeling good.”
He continued, “This has been a crash course in the mastery of mind, body, and spirit. I thought, ‘This is either going to take me out of the body, or it’s going to teach me how to truly live in it.’”
As James navigated his diagnosis, his father, James William, jumped into action to support his son through such a difficult time.
“The way you have shown up when I’ve been down and out this year — without us having to ask, without the expectation of even a thank you has been not just life-saving, but life-affirming,” James wrote in a January Instagram tribute to his dad. “Moving onto the ranch for when I’m away for treatment. Making lunches, making fires for @vanderkimberly, driving kids, even taking care of the dogs and chickens, but it’s even more than that. I’m blown away by how you’ve been there for me emotionally as I’ve moved through everything cancer brings up.”
He concluded, “I know it’s outside your comfort zone, but especially since Mom died, you have come through for me again and again and again in ways that I didn’t even know how much I needed. Thank you for being the best. I will keep my promise that we won’t ever ask you to change Jeremiah’s diapers.”
