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James Van Der Beek was an entertainment staple after Dawson’s Creek premiered in 1998, making numerous appearances in TV and movies throughout his career. In 2010, he married his second wife, Kimberly Brook, and the pair welcomed several beautiful children. The couple regularly posted photos of their little ones on Instagram, and James even revealed that he let his kids watch his classic Varsity Blues.
While James and Kimberly created a beautiful family with their six children, they had a fair share of struggles. Kimberly suffered a miscarriage in November 2019 while she was expecting their sixth child. In June 2020, she had another miscarriage, but they welcomed their youngest child in November 2021. Despite some hardships — including James’ cancer battle — the pair was incredibly happy raising their children until the end of James’ life, when he died in February 2026. Learn more about the couple’s six kids here.
Olivia
Kimberly gave birth to the couple’s oldest daughter, Olivia, on September 25, 2010. James’ wife revealed that she “gave him full naming power,” in an interview with People. The couple explained some of the significance behind naming her Olivia had to do with when the pair first met. “There’s an olive tree in Israel that’s special to us,” he said. “We spent time under it when we first met in Israel, then we went back to this tree when I was pregnant,” Kimberly said.
James seems very close to his oldest child. Back in June 2021, he revealed that he brought Olivia to The Van Gogh Experience exhibit in his family’s home of Austin, Texas. Kimberly also gushed over the little girl in an Instagram post on her tenth birthday. “Olivia, thank you for making me a Mommy on this day 10 years ago. Thank you for being the little Mama to your siblings. Thank you for your grace in understanding that I am learning to be a parent through you. I love you with every piece of my heart and soul,” she wrote.
Joshua
James and Kimberly’s only son is their second child, Joshua. He was born on March 13, 2012. Kimberly blogged shortly after Joshua’s birth and her experience for People. “This new life has brought about new joys. It’s hard to top hearing your baby’s heartbeat for the first time, finally holding them in your arms and nursing them, or trying to cook while they’re hanging from your legs,” she wrote in the blog.
Like with Olivia, Kimberly wrote a similarly glowing birthday post for Joshua, where she complimented how outspoken and funny he is. “The way you step in and speak up for justice. The kindness you have for all people and life is profound. Nobody makes me laugh like you do. You’re HILARIOUS and remind us all not to take things too seriously,” she wrote.
Annabel
Kimberly and James welcomed their second daughter, Annabel, on January 25, 2014. James revealed that they hadn’t discussed what to name their second daughter before she was born in an episode of The Talk, via People. “[Kimberly] said, ‘Well, only one name came to me.’ I said, ‘Yeah only one name came to me too.’ And it was the same name,” he explained. Kimberly made an Instagram post a few days after Annabel was born to share her name.
Similar to her siblings, Annabel also got a sweet Instagram post when her birthday rolled around. “Your nurturing, fun loving, authentic, kind, pure, playful self has healed those you’ve graced your presence with since the day you were born,” Kimberly wrote in an Instagram caption.
Emilia
Kimberly gave birth to the pair’s third daughter on March 23, 2016: Emilia. Back in February 2021, Kimberly revealed in an Instagram Story that the couple had to rush their daughter to the emergency room after she hit her head, via People. Luckily, it wasn’t too serious, and she was as good as new!
In her most recent birthday post for Emilia, Kimberly shared that her daughter is both outspoken and a great dancer. “This Queen expresses herself FULLY, with detail, confronts effortlessly, loves deeply, expresses purely and is wildly in touch with her heart space. She’s fun, got some serious dance moves and is a continual inspiration to everyone she’s around,” she wrote.
Gwendolyn
The couple’s youngest little girl was born in June 2018. Gwendolyn apparently is a very big Miley Cyrus fan, as James revealed in a birthday post for his daughter. He said she regularly sings “Wrecking Ball,” as she walks around. The Dawson’s Creek star wrote about how his littlest likes to be the center of attention. “I live for the way you disrupt my agendas by ordering me into my heart and demanding nothing less than pure 100% presence. I love how you capture the room by being shy, then shamelessly go through your bag of tricks to make sure the attention stays on you,” he wrote.
Jeremiah
After struggling with two miscarriages, James and Kimberly welcomed their sixth child and second son Jeremiah, 15 months, in November 2021. The actor shared an emotional announcement that they’d welcomed their baby boy on his Instagram. “[Kimberly] gave birth naturally on the ranch… and here we are,” he wrote in the post. “Each child brings their own energy, their own manifestation of consciousness, their own lessons. The ones we lost each gifted us with different pieces of the puzzle… leaving us that much more grateful for the ongoing master class we get to enjoy with this sweet, wise little one.”
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