Katie Holmes’ ‘Dawson’s Creek’ love triangle was real — a co-star’s new book tells the story

Sometimes life draws inspiration from real life. "Dawson's Creek" cast member Kerr Smith has published a book about his experience making the hit teen show, sharing some revelations about the cast's dynamics, including a rift between Joshua Jackson and James Van Der Beek due to both of them liking the same girl. Surprising no one who's seen the show, that girl is Katie Holmes. 

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“The worst-kept secret at Dawson’s Creek was season one’s rather meta ‘love triangle’ between James, Josh, and a certain Joey Potter look-alike. And hey, Katie and the guys were all in and around their twenties, and undeniably attractive — of course they dated,” wrote Smith, as reported by Entertainment Weekly. 

He revealed that the dynamic between the three of them impacted the way the set functioned. “Was that scandalous? Hardly. Unpredictable? Not even close. But... while nobody was talking openly about the romantic entanglements that had quietly complicated season one, those simmering tensions had a way of making the on-set air feel slightly charged, even on the most ordinary days, into season two and beyond." 

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Smith was cast on the second season of the show, after the love triangle off-screen had begun to take shape. He shared that Jackson and Van der Beek were cordial with eachother, but didn't hang out if the cameras weren't rolling. 

“They didn’t interact off set. It wasn’t dramatic, and it didn’t get in the way of anything that mattered. It was simply...a thing that existed. We were all aware of it, nobody talked about it, it was just an undercurrent that ran beneath everything for the better part of the run —quiet, unnecessary, and, frankly, a little immature. But there it was. The show went on," he wrote.  

What ultimately healed Jackson and Van Der Beek's relationship

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He shared that Jackson and Van Der Beek healed their relationship in 2000, following a screening of his movie "The Skulls." Jackson invited the whole cast. It was actress Mary Margaret Humes, who played Van Der Beek's mother in the show, who pushed Van Der Beek to go, resulting in the two men mending their relationship. 

“For the first time in ages, their eyes met, even when the cameras were off. It felt like, she says,‘the beginning of the healing process for them,'" wrote Smith. 

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