Actress Busy Philipps has revealed she was diagnosed with a rare brain tumour after undergoing a full-body MRI scan in February.
The 47-year-old Dawson's Creek star booked the appointment the day after her former co-star James Van Der Beek died from colon cancer at the age of 48.
Philipps, who played Audrey Liddell on the hit Nineties teen drama series, had no symptoms of the grade 2 oligodendroglioma. The rare, slow-growing tumour is found in just 1,100 to 1,300 people per year in the United States.
The lesion was discovered after Philipps was inspired to undergo the MRI scan, which checks for more than 500 conditions, after reading about it on Instagram. Speaking to People Magazine about her health ordeal, Philipps explained that her scan was originally scheduled for January, but a blizzard forced her to push the appointment to February 12.
Talking with her ex-husband and close friend Marc Silverstein, she considered cancelling the scan amid her grief for Van Der Beek and a busy work period. However, Silverstein told her Van Der Beek would want her to find out more about her health, saying: "Maybe it's the best thing you could do for your friend this morning. Go get that scan."
The scan detected a lesion on her brain, although glioblastoma, an aggressive cancerous tumour with no cure, was quickly ruled out. Her doctor instructed her to get a follow-up MRI as early as possible to get a better look at the lesion.
Philipps recalled the phone call when her doctor told her: "This is a real tumor, and it's inside your brain. And Busy, it's got to come out." She hyperventilated and tried to breathe upon hearing the news.
A month later, the actress underwent a five-hour procedure to remove the 2.6-centimetre tumour. Silverstein, who is the father of her daughters Birdie, 17, and Cricket, 13, supported her at the hospital. A biopsy revealed the tumour was malignant, though her doctor advised that "it has the best prognosis of all of the malignant gliomas."
In April, Philipps was back in hospital after contracting a staphylococcus infection in her incision, undergoing another surgery to clear it. The infection was discovered when her dermatologist noticed the incision site during a Botox appointment. Philipps, who had just started filming her new show Cupertino, admitted: "The second surgery really threw me. I just felt like I was back to square one, and I was really, really upset." She added: "I'm grateful that I'm alive," describing the period as "the weirdest six months of my life."
James Van Der Beek's death from colorectal cancer
The diagnosis comes following the death of lead actor James Van Der Beek, who passed away in February at the age of 48 after battling colorectal cancer. Van Der Beek played the loveable yet misguided titular character Dawson Leery on Dawson's Creek, which ran for six seasons until 2003 and followed a group of best friends at Capeside High School.
Playing the lead role cemented Van Der Beek as a teen heartthrob, supported by starring roles in blockbuster films such as Varsity Blues and The Rules of Attraction. By the time the show ended, he had been named one of People Magazine's 50 most beautiful people. In the late 2000s, he stepped out of the spotlight for television roles, off-Broadway productions, and an appearance on Dancing With The Stars.
In 2020, Van Der Beek moved his family from Los Angeles to a ranch in Austin, Texas, for a simpler life. He revealed in November 2024 that he had been diagnosed with colorectal cancer, stating he had been "privately dealing with this diagnosis and has been taking steps to resolve it with the support" of his family.
His wife Kimberly Van Der Beek, 44, shared the news of his death on Instagram, writing: "Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning. He met his final days with courage, faith, and grace. There is much to share regarding his wishes, love for humanity and the sacredness of time. Those days will come. For now we ask for peaceful privacy as we grieve our loving husband, father, son, brother, and friend." He is survived by Kimberly and their six children: Olivia, 15, Joshua, 13, Annabel, 12, Emilia, nine, Gwendolyn, seven, and Jeremiah, four.
Michelle Williams and career success
Michelle Williams, 45, played Jen Lindley, the New York City wildchild banished to Capeside to live with her grandmother. Post-Dawson's, Williams achieved significant career success, earning four Oscar nominations and winning two Golden Globes.
One of her most acclaimed roles was in the 2004 movie Brokeback Mountain, where she met her partner Heath Ledger. The couple welcomed a daughter, Matilda, in October 2005 before breaking up in 2007. Three months after their separation, Ledger died of an accidental drug overdose at the age of 28.
Williams did not comment publicly on Ledger's death until 2016, focusing on raising Matilda away from the public spotlight. Speaking to Porter magazine in 2016, she said: "In all honesty, for pretty much everything else, I feel like I'm a believer in not fighting circumstances, accepting where you are and where you've been. In pretty much all senses but one." Speaking of her daughter's loss, she added: "I would be able to go totally down that line of thinking were it not for Matilda not having her dad. You know, that's just something that doesn't... I mean, it just won't ever be right."
Joshua Jackson's divorce and wildfire loss
Joshua Jackson, 47, played Dawson's best friend Pacey Witter, the bad boy of Capeside who eventually won Joey Potter's heart. After wrapping the show, Jackson played teen rebels in films like Cruel Intentions before finding renewed small-screen success in TV series Fringe and Doctor Odyssey.
Jackson's personal life has also faced difficulties. He married Jodie Turner-Smith in 2019, but four years later she filed for divorce citing irreconcilable differences. Their custody agreement over their five-year-old daughter Juno proved to be a sticking point. They appeared close to an agreement last May but disagreed over Juno's school and long-distance travel, TMZ reported. A court hearing scheduled for October 15 was cancelled after Turner-Smith's legal team filed documents requesting the cancellation.
Last year, Jackson lost his $2 million home in Topanga Canyon to Los Angeles wildfires. Jackson had lived in the house during his early childhood before moving to Canada at age eight when his parents divorced. He purchased the property over two decades ago and was living there with his daughter. Speaking to Mr Porter in July 2021, he called buying the home a healing experience, noting that his childhood bedroom became his daughter's room, complete with a dragon mural left intact by the previous owner.
Katie Holmes' high-profile divorce
Katie Holmes, 47, played Joey Potter, whose troubled family life included a father in prison for drug trafficking before she was memorably robbed at gunpoint. Offscreen, Holmes' high-profile marriage to Tom Cruise and subsequent divorce overshadowed her career post-Dawson's.
Holmes and Cruise married in 2006 in a Scientologist ceremony in Italy, months after welcoming daughter Suri. In June 2012, Holmes filed for divorce in New York after five years of marriage to seek sole custody of Suri, who was six at the time, and remove her from the Church of Scientology. Her lawyer confirmed a settlement on July 9, 2012, granting Holmes sole custody, a 10 million pound settlement, and $38,000 a year in child support totaling $400,000 over 12 years. Child support has since ended as Suri is now a college student and legal adult.
In 2017, Holmes pivoted toward directing to be more present for Suri, describing her daughter growing up as "heartbreaking," adding: "You have to do everything you can to give them what they need, and then they're going to go. And that's going to be very, very sad for me." Holmes has recently focused on her new project Happy Hours, a trilogy of films she wrote, stars in, and directs alongside Jackson, portraying former lovers rekindling their romance years later.
Tragedies of Obi Ndefo and Heidi Ferrer
Actor Obi Ndefo, who played Joey Potter's brother-in-law Bodie Wells between 1998 and 2002, died in November 2024 at the age of 51. Five years prior, the Yale graduate lost both legs in an August 2019 hit-and-run crash when a drunk driver struck him while he was loading a cooler into his trunk outside an Erewhon Market on Beverly Boulevard in Los Angeles. The incident left one leg shattered and the other partially severed, leading to double amputation. A GoFundMe account set up by friends and family raised more than $290,000 for prosthetics, medical costs, and home accessibility.
Mary-Margaret Humes, who played Dawson's mother Gale Leery, posted an Instagram tribute following Ndefo's death, writing: "These words don't come easy. It's hard for me to conceive that you have left us, my dear friend. You always were and always will be a bright shining light. What an example of pure unfiltered love and tenacity you set as you faced life's challenges of recent. I will cherish all of our messages of love and support to each other over the past few years. Rest in peace sweet warrior."
Dawson's Creek writer Heidi Ferrer died by suicide in 2021 at her Los Angeles home at the age of 50, following a 13-month battle with COVID-19. Ferrer contracted the virus in April 2020 and became bedridden by June, suffering from severe body aches, fatigue, and neurological tremors. Her husband, director Nick Guthe, told CNN it took months to get a referral for a long-haul Covid clinic, which arrived the day before she died. Guthe recalled her expressing fear over losing the ability to walk or care for herself before her death.
