James Ven Der Beek's Family Called Grifters After Controversy Over Refunds for Signed Jersey

When Dawson's Creek star James Van Der Beek died in February 2026, he left behind swaths of devastated devoted fans. They saw his passing at the young age of 48, after a long battle with colorectal cancer, as a blow to their nostalgic memories of his career and his status as a heartthrob. Many mourned the man himself and the connections he had made with fans in the years following his rise to stardom.

He also left behind a wife, Kimberly Van Der Beek, and six kids.

But in the wake of his passing, some behaviors began to concern some people who believed that his wife, Kimberly, was grifting from fans. It all coalesced after a disturbing email was sent to people who had ordered a signed jersey from James before his death. The email, concerning refunds, prompted a controversy and put his widow's behavior squarely under the microscope.

James had been selling signed versions of his Varsity Blues jersey months before he died. After he passed, he clearly couldn't sign any more, so fans who had ordered jerseys expected refunds.

And then, an email arrived that had jaws dropping. Whoever was in charge of the jersey purchases was encouraging people to decline a refund and let Kimberly keep the money.

Shortly after James's death, it became apparent that his family was in dire financial straits following his long battle with cancer. A GoFundMe rapidly raised money to support Kimberly and their kids as they struggled to find a way to support themselves after his passing, as Parade notes. As of the publication of this article, it had raised over $2.7 million.

Which begs the question: Why would they need to keep the money from potential jersey refunds?

The email, which was posted to Reddit, said that money sent for refunds would be "deducted directly from the proceeds being sent directly to James's family," which many people called manipulative and cruel.

By demanding that people leave their money on the table and using James's children to twist the knife, some believed that Kimberly, his widow, was grifting for more money. It left a bad taste in the mouths of many, who accused his widow of tarnishing his legacy with a grift.

One Reddit user summed it up, writing, "If refunds are being offered, they should be offered cleanly. Adding emotional pressure to influence people’s decision is beyond inappropriate.”

If it were just an issue with the jersey refunds, people likely wouldn't be as upset. Unfortunately, some believe that there is an undeniable pattern of grifting, and they're calling it out.

On Reddit, one user pointed out that the issue with his family's behavior seems to extend into the entire response to his passing. His "legacy," they claim, isn't all that special to begin with, so people decrying his widow's behavior as tainting his "legacy" are missing the point, they claim.

The Reddit user wrote, "Let's cool it with this 'legacy' stuff. He's a dime-a-dozen actor who was in a successful TV show a very very long time ago.

"His legacy was that of many actors in his position. He had a name. He failed to capitalize on it. He had a leg up on 99 percent of the human population and failed to follow up and use his unique name, star power, and uh ... incredible acting skills to maintain his position like a star from Friends or similar shows."

They added, "That is not yours or my problem. His poor financial decisions. His poor career choices. His s--tty judgement of character by marrying an anti-vaxx grifter."

The user opined, "Sucks for his kids. Sucks for people who actually like the guy, but it is what it is. Just because these people become famous and 'liked,' does not mean they are morally above everybody else. In fact, it puts them in even better positions to scam their fans — which they've taken up to doing pretty frequently."

And unfortunately for the Van Der Beek family and his legacy, many people seem to agree.

While lashing his widow over decisions about the jersey refunds seems to be a bridge too far for some, others are fed up with what they see as a pattern extending long before James's passing. And they want other people to be wise to the issue as they see it, hoping to stave off more "scamming."

It should be noted that it's unclear who may have emailed fans about purchase refunds for the jersey, and whether Kimberly was involved. As of the publication of this article, no clarity has been offered on the subject.