James Van Der Beek forced to drop out of ‘Dawson’s Creek’ reunion due to illness, Lin-Manuel Miranda to replace him

Can we still call it “Dawson’s Creek” without Dawson?

The Dawson’s Creek cast is reuniting for a special event, but James Van Der Beek had to drop out due to illness. Lin-Manuel Miranda will be stepping in as an understudy for the reunion, filling Dawson’s role.

Van Der Beek took to Instagram Sunday evening to reveal he will not be joining Monday’s “Dawson’s Creek” reunion due to a stomach illness. The actor announced last November that he was diagnosed with stage three colorectal cancer.

The event will include a table read of the pilot episode with other original cast members. Miranda’s involvement may be due to his connection with Michelle Williams and Thomas Kail, who is involved in the reunion and directed “Hamilton.”