The Dawson’s Creek star owed nearly US $270,000 in unpaid taxes before his death, putting the spotlight back on his dire financial situation.
Leah Goulis
New details have emerged about Dawson’s Creek star James Van Der Beek’s dire financial situation prior to his death last week.
According to recent reports, the actor and doting father-of-six spent the last few years playing catch-up financially thanks to a massive six-figure tax debt years before his death.
TMZ reported that the star and wife Kimberly were hit with a lien in November 2021 for unpaid taxes between the years 2018 and 2019.
“The IRS declared the duo owed US $95,438.31 for 2017 … and $173,890.31 in 2019 … for a total of $269,328.62,” the publication states.
It is believed the couple paid off the debt and the lien was released in April 2022, two years before Van Der Beek revealed that he had been diagnosed with colorectal cancer.
The news of unpaid taxes has come to light after fans were left torn after it was revealed the star purchased the $6.7 million Texas ranch his family was renting a month before he died.
Fans were divided over the revelation after a GoFundMe page was set up on behalf of Kimberly to help with raising their six children and paying off the actor’s extensive cancer treatment.
“In the wake of this loss, Kimberly and the children are facing an uncertain future. The costs of James’s medical care and the extended fight against cancer have left the family out of funds,” the fundraiser read.
“They are working hard to stay in their home and to ensure the children can continue their education and maintain some stability during this incredibly difficult time.”
As of Tuesday, the page has raised over US $2.6 million with stars such as Derek Hough, Ricki Lake, and Kaley Cuoco all among the donors. Steven Spielberg made a generous US $25,000 donation while actress Zoe Saldana pledged to making a recurring donation of US $2,500 a month.
The fundraiser received public backlash with some criticising the request for donations given the family was in a financial position to purchase their luxe estate before the star died.
“Let’s have the family stop begging for money for the upkeep of the ranch. The public isn’t here to pay James Van Der Beek’s light bill,” one angry fan commented online.
“I donated my child’s entire college fund to James Van Der Beek’s GoFundMe and now I feel duped,” another wrote.
The backlash forced the late actor’s rep to issue a statement clarifying the family’s recent purchase.
“James secured down payment for the Texas ranch for the family with the help of friends through a trust so they could shift from rent to mortgage,” the rep told People.
Shortly after his death, it was revealed that, despite being the star of the soap, Van Der Beek made no further income from Dawson’s Creek due to a clause in his contract about re-runs and streaming deals of the hit series.
“There was no residual money,” he said on the US To
